Comment on these:
1. Colorado Consumer Health Initiative (CCHI) is an organization that has a stake in supporting health equity. Focusing on protecting individuals and families from overinflated hospital bills and costs, CCHI represents those who face disparities in healthcare due to barriers that exist in society. Polling public opinion, the board presents issues to policymakers and then to the legislature. According to the website, “recent work includes:
-Supporting a paid family and medical leave program in Colorado
-Promoting equal pay for equal work
-Supporting a maternal mortality review committee to address why African American women die in/around childbirth at a rate three times higher than other mothers
-Ensuring transgender Coloradans cannot be denied equitable insurance coverage for health care services
-Advocating for fairer medical debt collection practices
-Supporting housing policies that secure healthy living environments and funding for legal support to Coloradans facing eviction
-Ensuring an accurate census count in Colorado”
Currently, Colorado is working toward restructuring its healthcare model as the donut hole in Medicare and Medicaid is an issue for a large portion of the population. This organization strives to educate the public regarding their ability to voice their opinions in policy reform.
Regarding the issue of disaster preparedness, The Medical Reserves Corps (MRC), exists as a national network of volunteers to aid communities in the event of a disaster or catastrophe. A major stakeholder involved in this organization is the overall general public as the organization was born from the national response of medical personal responding to the terrorist attacks of 9/11.
“…There was an immediate outpouring of offers of support to assist with the recovery, much of which came from private-sector volunteers wishing to help in the disaster response efforts. These included offers of medical and public health assistance. Frequently, these offers of assistance were refused, as the local, state, and federal governments had no means of ensuring the identities, licensure, and credentials of the volunteers.” (Frasca, 2010).
Any community member over the age of 18 can volunteer and be linked to a unit that will deploy them in response to a local or national emergency. They will be matched to a community based on their skills and the needs that arise. As a medical professional, the individual who volunteers through this organization can be expected to follow their state guidelines for licensure when deployed for local response and will be vetted by the federal government when deployed for a national response. “Federalized MRC volunteers, during the period of federal service, are also granted federal legal protection. During a public health emergency, under Section 2813 of the Public Health Service Act (as amended by the Pandemic All Hazards and Preparedness Act), the Secretary of HHS may appoint MRC volunteers as Intermittent Disaster Response Personnel, which grants them the following legal protections when they are working within the scope of their federal employment: (5)
* Liability protection by the Federal Tort Claims Act;
* Workers’ compensation by the Federal Employees Compensation Act; and
* Employment protection by the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA).” (Frasca, 2010)
The volunteer will attend training and drills to prepare for deployment. In 2005, the MRC responded to Hurricane Katrina and Rita and in 2008, they responded to Hurricane Gustav. The organization has continued to recruit and maintain a base of volunteers and in 2020, responded to the COVID-19 pandemic. Volunteer opportunities have grown in response to community members’ desire to shoulder one another.
References:
Colorado Consumer Health Initiative. (2019) Health Equity. https://cohealthinitiative.org/our-work/health-equity/
Frasca, D. R. (2010). The medical reserve corps as part of the federal medical and public health response in disaster settings. Biosecurity and Bioterrorism: Biodefense Strategy, Practice, and Science, 8(3), 265+. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A237534457/AONE?u=vol_n82n&sid=oclc&xid=e6591c85
2. Healthcare quality is a very important issue when it comes to healthcare and population health. Although healthcare is available country wide, quality healthcare is not available across all healthcare facilities. Accessibility of quality healthcare is a right guaranteed under our constitution that every citizen should access (Alexander, 2020). Government, particularly the federal government is the main stakeholder when it comes to provision of quality healthcare. Programs such as the Obama Care Act, Medicaid and other such programs initiated by the federal government serve as conduits for provision of quality health care (Alexander, 2020). For instance, the Obama Care Act reimburses healthcare facilities that provide quality but quantity healthcare. It is important for healthcare facilities to focus on the quality of the service rather than the quantity of the service provided at healthcare facilities.
Another major stakeholder in the provision of quality health care is the insurers. Insurance policies and covers should aim at provision and demanding of quality healthcare for their customers. The choices provided for healthcare facilities of choice should focus more on the quality of healthcare. Insurance are also major players and stakeholders in the provision of medication and also act as checks and balances for healthcare facilities (Alexander, 2020). The patients also stand to aim when services provides in healthcare facilitates meet the standards required.
Lastly, government and insurance facilities should provide adequate resources for the development of healthcare facilities infrastructure. Good infrastructure and upgraded technology for hospitals is important in ensuring that healthcare facilities meet the required standards when it comes to provision of superior healthcare facilities (Alexander, 2020). Services and upgraded health care facilities mean that low medication errors or errors related o poor infrastructure for hospitals and other healthcare facilities is at a minimum.
Women’s health
A major player for women’s health is the department of health both at the federal and state levels. The various healthcare agencies such as the CDC which are under the health department should ensure that a woman health especially availing various contraceptives is addresses (Ho, 2014). Health education is vital for women when it comes to issue of population control. This is because women issues are an important and integral part in control of population growth. Contraceptives are also important for women in low income areas in controlling a surge in population that usually results in high levels of poverty.
Reference
Alexander, L. L., LaRosa, J. H., Bader, H., & Garfield, S. (2020) New Dimensions in Women’s Health. Jones & Barlett Learning 2020
Ho, P.K. (2014) HCQIA Does not Provide Adequate Due Process Protection, Improve Healthcare Quality and is Outdated Under Obama Care. Ind Health L. Review., 11(2014): 303
