The recently launched AARP program titled "Divided We Fail" will be presented by the Lee County AARP co-ordinator Clarke Dahlgren at the February meeting of our Club. This program is a nonpartisan effort along with AARP's partners in business and labor to improve health care coverage, quality, and cost. It is also a campaign to force the candidates for public office at all levels to address the related issues of health and economic security, and to get their promises that after the election they will work in a bipartisan manner to enact meaningful reforms. The goal of the Divided We Fail program is to insure every American access to and coverage for guaranteed, affordable, quality care. That is a heady order they have cut out for themselves; can they make it?
I notice that nowhere in its publicity for the program does AARP mention the word "government". Do they support a universal health care program without government participation? Is such an arrangement remotely workable? Judging from the ads for supplemental Medicare insurance which appear in its glossy magazine, it does make one wonder where the organization stands on this issue. In fact, ads from all sorts of medically related companies seem to constitute their main source of media revenue. Do they not wish to antagonize these advertisers who may direct their ads elsewhere?
How powerful a lobby is AARP? I have not researched their Washington activities in any meaningful way, but I do not remember hearing or reading of their influence involving any congressional bills benefiting our senior population in this or any earlier sessions. If you know of any cooperative efforts by AARP, let us know by posting a comment to this article.
There are lots of questions to be answered by the speaker at our February meeting on Saturday, February 23 at 10:00 a.m. in the Grand Cypress Room at the Woodlands at Shell Point. If you are driving to Shell Point drive west on Summerlin Road toward Sanibel. After passing the intersection of Summerlin and McGregor Blvd. stay in the right lane and exit at the next traffic light (Shell Point Blvd.). Proceed past the Comfort Inn and Suites and Golf Course entrances and turn right at the Woodlands guard station. Tell the guard that you are going to a meeting in the Grand Cypress Room in the Commons. He will direct you where to park.
1 comment:
Darl,
A provocative write up on the Divided we Fail" campaign. I am involved as a volunteer with this initiative with Mandy and Helen. Three things come to mind of other initiatives...they were very instrumental in lobbying for a prescription drug program, they have taken a position against privatizing the social security program and in Florida they took a position that required the legislators to vote for minimum CNA staffing in skilled nursing facilities. Peter Dys didn't like this and spoke against the AARP in a meeting. Mandy tried to get Terry Kolath to have Clarke here for a academy program, but Terry said "No". Our facility did not meet the minimum standard. He said it should be left up to the facility. WRONG...the number of hours we had here was way below minimal...and the increase to meet the MINIMUM standard remains inadequate in my view...remember my background was in nursing administration and staffing levels is a major component in nursing management.
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