STATEMENT FROM THE CEO
Thursday, June 28, 2012
What does the Supreme Court decision on the Affordable Care Act mean for the Kansas City Free Health Clinic?
As you know, today the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act. The ruling is an important one, and we are gratified that those in Washington see that change must occur in order for the healthcare system to meet the needs of Americans. We know that here in the Kansas City area alone there are more than a quarter-million uninsured individuals who need access to health care now.
Today's ruling means that there will be expanded insurance coverage for Americans, but it is not a cure-all. There are still many who will remain uninsured or who will not be able to afford the options that are provided to them. The ruling removed the penalty for states that will not accept Federal expansion funds for their Medicaid systems. So there will continue to be questions as to whether state Medicaid programs will be expanding. There will still be thousands of Kansas Citians who will not have access to or be able to afford coverage.
Taken as a whole, for the Kansas City Free Health Clinic today's ruling means we will continue to work in partnership with the other safety-net providers in our community to prepare for changes as the ACA moves toward full implementation in 2014. In anticipation of its enactment, over the last eighteen months we have been laying groundwork to meet the requirements of the Act. Healthcare in this country is dramatically changing, and we are committed to being on the forefront of this new vision of patient care.
While it may take years for the full impact of today to be seen, here at the Kansas City Free Health Clinic we will continue to do what we've done for more than 40 years. Tomorrow at 8:30 a.m. we will open our doors and with the shared efforts of our tireless army of volunteers, see hundreds of patients who need care now.
Thank you for your partnership in our mission, and we look forward to sharing further details of our work.
Sincerely,
Sheri Wood
CEO
To see the original statement, click here.
2 Comments
Hello Ms. Wood,
I am currently circulating a petition that I will deliver to Governor Nixon on July 20th. Please sign the petition and pass to as many people as possible so that we can have full implementation of the ACA in Missouri.
Hi,
Citizens of Missouri know that access to quality health care is a human right, not a privilege. We know that many Missouri residents will not have access to quality and affordable health care without the Affordable Care Act. Following the Supreme Cout decision to uphold the law, some governors have stated that they will not implement the portion of the Affordable Care Act that expands Medicaid to serve the neediest of our citizens. We are calling on Governor Nixon and Attorney General Koster to stand for all of our citizens by committing to fully implementing the Affordable Care Act in a timely manner.
That's why I created a petition to Governor Jay Nixon, which says:
"Commit to fully implementing the Affordable Care Act in the state of Missouri in a timely and responsible manner."
Will you sign this petition? Click here:
http://signon.org/sign/tell-governor-nixon-to?source=c.em.mt&r_by=2362938
Thanks!
It was good to read the article and see the video. I have spent the last year with my 17 year old daeghtur going through the unknown illness maze. She also felt nauseated but never got sick. Her biggest issue was passing out without any warning. She would pass out 3-7 times a week. Needless to say this wrecked havoc with her school life and life in general. We started out going through a neurologist who was sure she was having seizures. I kept pushing to find an answer. Two GPs, two neurologist and one cardiologist later we finally found a cardiologist, Dr. Hannon, out of Pitt Hospital in Greenville, NC who heard the symptons and gave the diagnosis of Neurocardiogenic Syncopy. The diagnosis was confirmed with a tilt table test. He explained the condition to us and is following the same meds that are being used at the Mayo Clinic. Every system in her body that is controlled by the autonomic nervous system has been affected. Her inability to sleep, digestion, circulation, tiredness, brain fog and the passing out have been extremely hard on her. She is getting better but it has been a long hard year for her. Both POTS and Neurocardiogenic syncope are disorders of the autonomic nervous system. At times the two seem more similar than dissimilar. It is so illusive and the symptoms keep changing. Hopefully Keegan will continue to get better.