For over fifty years, AARP's mission has been educating and engaging in the issues most important to you, our members. With over 40 million members we understand the importance of debate. Even when some members don't agree with our advocacy positions, it is critical that we make sure those differences of opinion are based on facts, not myths designed to derail a long overdue effort to fix what's wrong in our health care system.

Doing nothing is not an option. But any reform must not get between a patient and their doctor. It must not cut Medicare benefits. It must not allow insurers to continue to line their pockets by covering only the healthiest and the youngest.

AARP is committed to making sure health care reform will do the following for our members:

Lower Drug Costs and Strengthen Medicare: Close the Medicare Part D "doughnut hole," ensure patients' access to their doctors, and crack down on fraud and wasteful spending;

Protect Your Health Care Choices: Make sure you can choose your doctor, your health insurance plan and where to receive care;

End Discrimination by Insurance Companies: Prevent insurance companies from denying you coverage because of a pre-existing condition or using age to price Americans age 50-64 out of affordable, quality health insurance; and

Guarantee Stable, Affordable Coverage: Ensure you have the security of knowing that if you lose or change jobs, you will be able to get affordable, quality health insurance.

Since July 1st, when we started seeing a rise in phone calls and emails here at AARP as a result of the health care debate, we have lost approximately 50,000-60,000 members. While we are encouraged that almost 1.8 million people have either joined AARP or renewed their memberships over that same time span, we take the loss of any member seriously. ‪We don't want to see you, our members, leave for any reason, and understand that even when we all have the facts reasonable people may agree to disagree on the proposals being put forth by Congress.

AARP's strength has always been our members, and we're working hard to represent them as best we can. Each of our policy positions have been carefully considered and are set by our all-member volunteer board of directors based on input from our members.

We're also working to dispel several of the myths and lies that have warped the health care reform debate, targeting older Americans in particular with horror stories about euthanasia and rationed care. We believe that, at a time when a lot of the information about health reform surfacing on the Internet, cable news and talk radio simply isn't true, it's important that each of our members are armed with all the facts about this very important debate.

As we continue to fight on your behalf and work to fix our health care system, we are bound to have different opinions among our members. We respect each opinion and choice you make, and will do our best to represent the individuals who have, with their membership, shown that the collective voice of 40 million members working together have the power to make our health care system better - for themselves and for generations to come.

Sincerely,
A. Barry Rand

In April of this year, AARP and Walgreens are launched a two-year national mobile health screening tour called The AARP/Walgreens Wellness Tour. The goal of the tour is to deliver more than 2.5 million free health screenings for early detection and prevention of diseases, as well as health education, with a special emphasis on underserved areas. The total value of the screenings to be administered over the course of the tour is estimated at over $60 million.

The nationwide tour will visit more than 3,000 communities in 300 cities in the 48 continental United States and Puerto Rico via nine customized, traveling education and health-screening buses. One of the nine buses is solely dedicated to Puerto Rico and is called the AARP/Walgreens La Gira Del Buen Vecino.

For more information and a schedule of stops in Missouri visit the Wellness Tour website 

Myth: Health care reform is too expensive – we can't afford it.

Fact: The President and Congress have committed to producing legislation that will be paid for so it won't saddle our children and grandchildren with debt.

Fact: If we do nothing to fix health care, families with Medicare or employer-based health coverage will likely see their premiums nearly double again in the next seven years.

Fact: If we do nothing to fix health care, the share of your income spent on health care will nearly double in the next seven years.

Bottom Line: When one in three Americans say someone in their family skipped pills, postponed or cut back on needed medical care due to the cost; when countless bankruptcies are related to medical expenses; when the number of uninsured approaches 50 million; when government spending on health programs rises so rapidly that it jeopardizes other priorities; and when employers struggle to pay for the costs of health care, the fact is, we can't afford not to fix health care.

Myth: Health care reform will hurt Medicare.

Fact: None of the health care reform proposals being considered by Congress would cut Medicare benefits or increase your out-of-pocket costs for Medicare services.

Fact: Health care reform will lower prescription drug costs for people in the Medicare Part D coverage gap or "doughnut hole" so they can get better afford the drugs they need.

Fact: Health care reform will protect seniors' access to their doctors and reduce the cost of preventive services so patients stay healthier.

Fact: Health care reform will reduce costly, preventable hospital readmissions, saving patients and Medicare money.

Fact: Rather than weaken Medicare, health care reform will strengthen the financial status of the Medicare program.

Bottom Line: For people in Medicare, health care reform is about lowering prescription drug costs for people in the "doughnut hole", keeping the doctor of your choice, improving the quality of care, and eliminating billions in waste that is causing poor care and medical errors.

 

http://aarp.convio.net/site/PageNavigator/HAN09_learn_more

 

Myth: Health care reform means rationed care.

Fact: None of the health reform proposals being considered would stand between individuals and their doctors or prevent any American from choosing the best possible care.

Fact: Health care reform will NOT give the government the power to make life or death decisions for anyone regardless of their age. Those decisions will be made by an individual, their doctor and their family.

Fact: Health care reform will help ensure doctors are paid fairly so they will continue to treat Medicare patients.

Bottom Line: Health reform isn't about rationing; it's about giving people the peace of mind of knowing that they will be able to keep their doctors and that they will always have a choice of affordable health plans.

click here to watch a video by AARP on the myths and facts of reform

 

 

Some special interest groups have been spreading misinformation to folks in the hopes of killing health care reform legislation; in short, they perpetuate myths and use scare tactics to make people think that reform is a bad idea. (For example, like the contention that health care reform would ration your care, hurt Medicare or be a government takeover.)

So when these myths are being made, we want to make sure we're here to give the correct information to dispel any fears about what health care reform can do for you. And we'll be debunking them every day this week on the blog!

Myth 1: Health care reform is socialized medicine.

Fact: Health care reform will preserve the employer-based health care system, meaning an estimated 200 million Americans will continue to get their coverage through their employers.

Fact: For people buying coverage for themselves, there would be a range of private health plans to choose from. Also, the so-called "public plan" option would seek to give American consumers another choice if they can't find affordable, quality coverage in the private insurance market. The goal of the "public plan" is to give consumers the best value for their money and force greater competition among insurance plans for our business.

Fact: Every proposal that Congress is considering would allow people to choose their own doctors and hospitals.

Health care reform isn't about a government takeover. It's about guaranteeing all Americans a choice of health care plans they can afford.

Check out more info on health care reform here and check in tomorrow for the next myth debunking!

For Jan Schupp, AARP Missouri advocate since 2004, turning her passion about an issue into action gave her a newfound sense of power and purpose, even though the legislative process was often frustrating.

“I would say, ‘What can one disabled chaplain do? I have no power. I want something to happen, but who am I?’ ” Schupp said. “By joining AARP and being an advocate and having the strength of AARP behind me, I now say that one disabled chaplain can do a lot!"

Click to read full Bulletin article

AARP Global Network

State Health Care Briefs 2009: Why Health Care Reform is Important is now available on AARP Policy & Research.

http://www.aarp.org/research/health/carefinancing/state_hcb_09.html

This set of State Health Care Briefs provides a one-page overview of facts on health care data for each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

 

Tips to help seniors beat the heat this summer

• Reduce strenuous activities. The more physical activities you perform, the higher your body temperature will rise. Put off chores and other strenuous activities and stay indoors, out of the sun.
• Stay hydrated. Drink plenty of water (4-8 glasses a day) even if you don’t feel thirsty, and avoid alcohol and caffeinated drinks.
• Dress appropriately. Wear light-weight, loose fitting, light-colored clothing and protect yourself from the sun by wearing a hat, sunglasses and sunscreen when you’re outside.
• Go somewhere cool. If you don’t have air conditioning in your home, go somewhere that does. Great options include movie theaters, malls, senior and community centers, libraries, places of worship or a friend or family member’s home.
• Keep cool at home. If you don’t have air conditioning and are unable to leave your home, close shades to keep out the sun, stay on the lower level of your home, and take a cool bath or shower to lower your body temperature on extremely hot days. Also, keep in mind temperatures inside your home should not exceed 85 degrees Fahrenheit for prolonged periods of time.
• Know the signs of heat stroke. If you observe signs of heat exhaustion such as weakness, nausea, heavy sweating or lack of sweat, flushed face, high body temperature, rapid pulse, dizziness and or confusion, take action immediately. Move to the nearest, cool, shaded spot you can find, hydrate, apply cold compress and call for medical assistance.