Politico reports today that President Barack Obama plans to convene a White House working meeting to address the nation's health care system sometime in the late winter or early spring. The meeting would bring together key members of Congress and other stakeholders (we presume that means insurance industry types, various employers, health care professionals, etc).

This is just the latest signal from the Obama Administration that health care will be a top priority in 2009. In mid-December, former Senate Majority Leader and nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Tom Daschle called on Americans to host health care discussions in their homes, workplaces and communities. (Watch highlights of our SEIU staff discussion here). More than 330 SEIU online activists signed up to host their own health care discussions during the holidays.

More good news, reports Politico:

"Obama and his point person on health care, former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, have staffed up like they plan to push forward with it, lining up a roster of communications and policy strategists to assist in the effort."

I'm guessing Sen. Daschle is having no trouble at all finding qualified, hard-working people willing to head to Washington to fix our nation's health care system. Let's get to work! If you haven't already, support the Obama Administration's efforts by adding your name to keep health care on the map.

Politico reports today that President Barack Obama plans to convene a White House working meeting to address the nation's health care system sometime in the late winter or early spring. The meeting would bring together key members of Congress and other stakeholders (we presume that means insurance industry types, various employers, health care professionals, etc).

This is just the latest signal from the Obama Administration that health care will be a top priority in 2009. In mid-December, former Senate Majority Leader and nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Tom Daschle called on Americans to host health care discussions in their homes, workplaces and communities. (Watch highlights of our SEIU staff discussion here). More than 330 SEIU online activists signed up to host their own health care discussions during the holidays.

More good news, reports Politico:

"Obama and his point person on health care, former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, have staffed up like they plan to push forward with it, lining up a roster of communications and policy strategists to assist in the effort."

I'm guessing Sen. Daschle is having no trouble at all finding qualified, hard-working people willing to head to Washington to fix our nation's health care system. Let's get to work! If you haven't already, support the Obama Administration's efforts by adding your name to keep health care on the map.

The reports are coming back from your health care meetings, and we couldn't be more impressed. From everything you've said, it looks like your meetings were substantive, full of ideas and expertise, and were a rousing success.

We thought we'd share a small sampling of the ideas that you've submitted to us from your group discussions.

In Nashville, TN, Jane Fleishman and her health care discussion group came away with many diagnoses and solutions for our nation's health care problems. Here's what she reported, in the form of five ideas (out of many submitted - thanks, Jane!):

"Lack of access to good food is a major problem impacting people's health. The system doesn't do a good job of focusing on health. There is a lack of emphasis on diet, exercise and other preventive methods. The system does not seem to have prevention and health as a goal. It seems to be about something else entirely."

"Obesity is epidemic, especially in the South. People who keep their weight down and do things like get regular exercise should be able to get lower insurance premiums or some other incentive for doing the right thing in taking care of themselves."

"Remove the stigma and lack of equity for mental health care. Also, seeking mental health treatment should not make a person uninsurable. Currently, it is very likely that a person will be denied insurance if they have used mental health services, even for problems that are situational (i.e., dealing with grief). "

"Incentives for health care practitioners should be improved (i.e., they get paid when they keep people well as opposed to when their patients get sick)."

"Institute home visiting programs for pregnant women so babies and families get off to a healthy start and we lower our shameful infant mortality rate. In particular, we need to deal with the racial disparity evident in infant mortality rates in the U.S.."

Out of the great state of Washington, this comes from our friend "Astarab":

"It's my observation from 35 years experience in nursing and preventative care that innovative complementary care both in nursing and medicine can save a lot of lives and money. Nurse practitioners is a profession that should be encouraged to grow as it gives excellent first line of care with more emphasis on education, counseling, and practical low cost methods of care."

And from Missouri come a few more ideas:

• Tuition assistance / grants to train healthcare staff (RN, LPN, CNA, Social Workers, etc.) and the education and salaries of the faculty of the training facilities that provide it. Pay for it through a combination of national, state, local and facility/hospital funding.
• Nationally compatible, user friendly, medical record keeping and charting software to allow for efficient and dependable medical record keeping.
• Increases in staffing of support personnel to aid nursing staff in the care of patients
• Encourage development of patient room design and equipment placement that emphasize hygiene, efficiency and ergonomics in the care of hospitalized patients.

If you've recently held your meeting and have yet to report back to us, please do so here: http://www.seiu.org/host.

Working Americans and health care consumers offer views & ideas on Obama health plan

Despite the busy holiday season, Americans throughout the country - from caregivers like nurses, doctors and pharmacists to ordinary health care consumers - have been gathering to hold their own health care meetings. You've brought your friends, your family, like-minded individuals, and even those who have different points of view together to share their ideas and input on health care reform that comes from the ground up.

News report after news report has been gracing our inboxes over the holiday season - from national papers like the New York Times to small, local papers from your areas.

Try this out - it's unbelievable:

1. Go to http://news.google.com. That's the Google News site.
2. Type in "obama health care discuss," and then click "search."
3. Voila! - that's right, there are that many articles that have been written about your health care discussions from around the country.

And it's not just the sheer volume of stories, it's what's contained within them. Each news story contains powerful anecdotes from meet-ups that include personal stories, concerns about the current health care system, and amazing recommendations and ideas on how to improve how we deliver care in this country.

We encourage you to read their reports in their own contexts. Because each and every meet-up has been a true discussion, picking and choosing small bits takes away from the power of reading them in their entirety - each is a portrait of our health care system.

Here are five highlights from the coverage:

1. New York Times: "At House Party on Health Care, the Diagnosis Is It's Broken"
2. San José Mercury News: "Citizens group answers Obama's call on health care"
3. Flint Journal (Michigan): "Health care reform topic of discussion at Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Flint"
4. Norwalk News (Connecticut): "Group discusses U.S. health care"
5. The Herald-Mail (Maryland/West Virginia/Pennsylvania): "Group eyes big changes in health care"

We couldn't be more proud of the work that all of you are doing. You've taken the initiative, and this is the result. It's what real grassroots mobilization looks like. Keep it up!

(On a side note: We held our own health care meet-up here at SEIU a few weeks ago - read about the discussion and watch the video footage from the meet-up on SEIU's blog here).

Working Americans and health care consumers offer views & ideas on Obama health plan

Despite the busy holiday season, Americans throughout the country - from caregivers like nurses, doctors and pharmacists to ordinary health care consumers - have been gathering to hold their own health care meetings. You've brought your friends, your family, like-minded individuals, and even those who have different points of view together to share their ideas and input on health care reform that comes from the ground up.

News report after news report has been gracing our inboxes over the holiday season - from national papers like the New York Times to small, local papers from your areas.

Try this out - it's unbelievable:

1. Go to http://news.google.com. That's the Google News site.
2. Type in "obama health care discuss," and then click "search."
3. Voila! - that's right, there are that many articles that have been written about your health care discussions from around the country.

And it's not just the sheer volume of stories, it's what's contained within them. Each news story contains powerful anecdotes from meet-ups that include personal stories, concerns about the current health care system, and amazing recommendations and ideas on how to improve how we deliver care in this country.

We encourage you to read their reports in their own contexts. Because each and every meet-up has been a true discussion, picking and choosing small bits takes away from the power of reading them in their entirety - each is a portrait of our health care system.

Here are five highlights from the coverage:

1. New York Times: "At House Party on Health Care, the Diagnosis Is It's Broken"
2. San José Mercury News: "Citizens group answers Obama's call on health care"
3. Flint Journal (Michigan): "Health care reform topic of discussion at Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Flint"
4. Norwalk News (Connecticut): "Group discusses U.S. health care"
5. The Herald-Mail (Maryland/West Virginia/Pennsylvania): "Group eyes big changes in health care"

We couldn't be more proud of the work that all of you are doing. You've taken the initiative, and this is the result. It's what real grassroots mobilization looks like. Keep it up!

(On a side note: We held our own health care meet-up here at SEIU a few weeks ago - read about the discussion and watch the video footage from the meet-up on SEIU's blog here).

This morning, the Philadelphia Inquirer published an editorial focusing on the uninsured and the incoming Obama Administration:

"So far, Obama is making all the right moves. Most important, he appears to be sticking to his first-year timetable - economic crisis or not."

The editorial lauds the nomination of former Senator Tom Daschle, stating that it's an indication that "the new administration plans to move boldly." Daschle, the piece states, is "well-versed in the ways of Congress, where Obama's reform will rise or fall," and that Daschle's plan to expand coverage while pulling the reins on health costs is a "workable strategy."

The piece also commends Obama on the health care meet-ups that have been taking place. Calling them a "smart move," the paper says that by "sampling public input on health care reform," the incoming administration will be able to "incorporate ideas from the grassroots" and learn from the "top-down" model that "helped sidetrack Clinton-era reform efforts."

The editorial board's conclusion?

"A can-do spirit and sense of urgency from a president-elect who wants 'change' are the best things America's uninsured have going for them."

Amidst retail sales reports, record snowfall and last minute shopping tips, no one expected "health care" to be gracing the headlines this week. But thanks to you and thousands like you, news outlets all across America -- from Chattanooga, Tennessee to St. George, Utah -- are buzzing with reports of your health care meet-ups.

Last week, SEIU staff convened a health care discussion of our own. Topics of conversation included "what's wrong with the current healthcare system?" and how policy can help address these problems. We decided to capture the meeting on video and wanted to share some highlights with you all. Watch here:

This is a busy time of year for all of us -- making it all the more impressive that thousands of Americans are hosting discussions in their homes and communities this week. Let's keep the momentum going right into the New Year. If you haven't yet attended or hosted a health care discussion, there's still time. Watch our video and sign-up today.

(You can view our hosting resource page, containing discussion guides and audio of our host conference call by clicking here.)

Otherwise, please use this form to report back to us on how your discussion went. And don't forget to submit your ideas for Inauguration Day!

Amidst retail sales reports, record snowfall and last minute shopping tips, no one expected "health care" to be gracing the headlines this week. But thanks to you and thousands like you, news outlets all across America -- from Chattanooga, Tennessee to St. George, Utah -- are buzzing with reports of your health care meet-ups.

Last week, SEIU staff convened a health care discussion of our own. Topics of conversation included "what's wrong with the current healthcare system?" and how policy can help address these problems. We decided to capture the meeting on video and wanted to share some highlights with you all. Watch here:

This is a busy time of year for all of us -- making it all the more impressive that thousands of Americans are hosting discussions in their homes and communities this week. Let's keep the momentum going right into the New Year. If you haven't yet attended or hosted a health care discussion, there's still time. Watch our video and sign-up today.

(You can view our hosting resource page, containing discussion guides and audio of our host conference call by clicking here.)

Otherwise, please use this form to report back to us on how your discussion went. And don't forget to submit your ideas for Inauguration Day!