Overview

Health Care for America Now is a national grassroots campaign organizing millions of Americans to win a guarantee of quality, affordable health care for all. ICAN is the Iowa state affiliate of the campaign.

The rising costs of health care services and insurance coverage are taking its toll on family budgets, businesses, and public programs. The cost of health care and health insurance is a major component of the economic fears concerning the public, along with the price of gas, housing, and other aspects of family budgets. The financial burden resulting from these growing costs are leading many to defer care, as families choose between food and health care, and contributing to increases in the uninsured. As Congress moves forward to address the growing uninsured population and the impact of rising health care costs on America's families, promoting improved access to affordable health care and adequate health coverage for all Americans will be an important but challenging objective.

Additionally, given the current economic climate, it is vitally important that Congress not sacrifice quality. The only way to achieve savings and reduce the level and rate of increases in the future is with comprehensive reform that provides coverage to everyone. Health reform legislation must include at least the same benefits as members of Congress get, including a wide choice of doctors.

HCAN supports health care coverage with out-of-pocket costs including premiums, co-pays and deductibles that are based on a family's ability to pay for health care, without limits on payments for covered services and a standard for health benefits that covers what people need to keep healthy and to be treated when they are ill. Health care benefits should cover all necessary care, including preventative services and treatment needed by those with serious and chronic conditions.

HCAN is asking every Member of Congress to support the H.R. 3962, the Affordable Health Care for America Act, which includes:

Affordability

• Out-of-pocket cap protections to limit what individuals and families pay
• Subsidies to assist lower- and middle-income individuals and families with paying for health care costs
• Cost-sharing protections designed to foster prevention, primary care and effective treatment of chronic conditions and no cost-sharing for preventive care services

Benefits

• A federally-established comprehensive benefit package that sets a defined coverage floor for public and private health insurance plan options in all markets
• A broad scope of coverage that will ensure sufficient and affordable care without annual or lifetime limits
• Incentives to encourage healthy lifestyles and habits, including programs such as smoking cessation and weight management

Updates

November 10, 2009

AFSCME and ICAN thank Congressmen Boswell in TV ad

Resources

• Fact Sheet: Medical Loss Ratio Q & A
• Report (PDF): New Health Insurance Premium Rules Will Control Costs For Families, Businesses
  But the Industry is trying to undercut congress and weaken this provision worth $1.9 billion to customers.
• Fact Sheet (PDF): Dependent Coverage Talking Points
• Fact Sheet: Summary of the Reconciliation Bill (H.R. 4872)
• Fact Sheet: Summary of the Democratic Health Reform Legislation
• Fact Sheet: Key Implementation Benchmarks of Senate Bill
• Fact Sheet: Talking Points on Democratic Health Reform Legislation
• Fact Sheet: Small Businesses and the Final Health Reform Package: 5 Need-to-Know Points
• Fact Sheet: Five Immediate Consumer Benefits Under Health Reform
• Report: States can receive $849 billion in new health care funding under Dem proposals
• Fact Sheet: What We're Close to Winning in Health Care
• Fact Sheet: 4 Things Congress Must Do to Make Health Care Affordable
• Talking Points on Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (H.R.3590)
• Issue Brief: Assessment of Affordability Provisions in the Exchange in House (H.R. 3962) and Senate (H.R. 3590) Health Reform Bills
• Fact Sheet: Summary of the Senate Health Reform Bill (H.R. 3590)
• Issue Brief: An Excise Tax On Higher Cost Health Plans Would Be A Leap In The Wrong Direction(PDF)
• Issue Brief: House Health Reform Bill (H.R. 3962) Reduces Deficit(PDF)
• Fact Sheet: What the Affordable Health Care for America Act Means for You
• Fact Sheet: Affordability and Benefits
• Fact Sheet: Seniors and Persons with Disabilities
• Fact Sheet: Equity for Communities of Color
• Fact Sheet: Addressing Disparities in Care for Women
• Fact Sheet: Principles of Health Care Reform
• Fact Sheet: Statement of Common Purpose
• Fact Sheet: Who is in the Coalition
• Fact Sheet: Who in Congress Supports Our Principles
• Fact Sheet: How We Win: Find out where we are in the process
• Chart (PDF): What Health Care Reform Really Looks Like

  In light of all the lies, distortions, and misinformation that have been spread about health care reform in general and the House health care reform bill (H.R. 3200) in particular, Health Care for America Now (HCAN)--the nation's largest health care campaign--has created a chart to show how the health care system would really work under America's Affordable Health Choices Act.

• Report: Three Proposals to Pay for Health Care Reform: Impacts on People in Your State
• Report: Health Insurance Coverage in Iowa Keeps Shrinking as Premiums, Family Costs Continue Climbing

Take Action!

View all current actions for all our issues in our Action Center