1199SEIU retirees joined other seniors at a November 16th White House meeting on healthcare reform with First Lady Michelle Obama. The meeting of senior and retired women focused on improving the Medicare program while providing quality care for all.
1199 retireee Monnie Callan was joined on the occasion by 1199ers Yvonne Richardson, Anne Jackson, Meredith Oehklers and by Linda Bock, RN, as well as other SEIU members like home care worker Loretta Johnson. "I was honored to attend the meeting as a member of the 1199SEIU Retiree Advisory Committee," says Callan, a former Montefiore Hospital social worker and a member of the 1199SEIU Retirees Division executive board.
The meeting, held in the East Room of the White House, discussed issues that particularly hurt older women such as the high cost of medical prescriptions. Of the more than eight million seniors who fell in the so-called Medicare Part D "doughnut hole" in 2007. nearly two thirds were women.
"My coverage protects me," Callan says. "But I take care of my sister who has Alzheimer's and we were forced to pay an extra $1,500 beyond the cost of her prescriptions before Medicare kicked in again.
"We discussed the need to press our legislators to pass comprehensive healthcare legislation," Callan says. "A high point of the meeting was Michelle Obama's remarks. When she mentioned the importance of a public option, the audience applauded.
In recent weeks, SEIU seniors and retirees have been hosting events in Florida, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Washington State to reach out to friends and family members about the need to pass healthcare reform now.
"The Republicans and the right wing are using healthcare reform as a referendum on President Obama," says Callan. "Their plan is to sink the legislation while sinking the president. We can't let that happen."
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