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Dr. Redlener Applauds Historic Effort but Points out Potential Risk if America’s Safety Net Programs Are Lost in Final Healthcare Reform

December 3, 2009 -- The New England Journal of Medicine today published a Perspective opinion piece addressing healthcare reform, co-authored by Irwin Redlener, MD, director, National Center for Disaster Preparedness at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health and president, Children’s Health Fund; and Roy Grant, MA, of the Children’s Health Fund, a national organization that advocates for and develops primary care programs for disadvantaged and medically underserved children.

This expert opinion piece applauds the historic efforts to pass health insurance reform and make healthcare more available to Americans, but cautions stakeholders to strongly consider the potential consequences of eliminating America’s Safety Net programs, currently insuring 100 million people, in the final healthcare reform legislation.  This article also points out that the conditions of poverty, isolation and population disparities which made a “healthcare safety net” necessary in the first place will remain, regardless of reforms which may be passed into law in the months to come.
"We applaud Congress and the President for their efforts to produce an historic health reform bill which will provide tens of millions of currently uninsured Americans access to secure health insurance coverage,” said Dr. Redlener, also professor of Clinical Population & Family Health and clinical professor of Pediatrics at Columbia University Medical Center. “Nevertheless, with more than 45 million Americans uninsured and many more underinsured, with more than 65 million Americans living in federally designated Health Professional Shortage Areas, and with many communities lacking sufficient specialty-care services, the existing safety net is simply inadequate — and is continuing to deteriorate and needs to be addressed.”

The piece can be read at http://healthcarereform.nejm.org/?p=2471

“We need to recognize that the pervasive negative impact of poverty and disparities on the health status of so many communities will not be ‘cured’ by health insurance reform alone. Preserving and strengthening ‘safety net’ programs will continue to be a critical need for the foreseeable future,” concluded Dr. Redlener.

About the Mailman School of Public Health

The only accredited school of public health in New York City and among the first in the nation, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health pursues an agenda of research, education, and service to address the critical and complex public health issues affecting millions of people locally and globally. The Mailman School is the recipient of some of the largest government and private grants in Columbia University’s history. Its more than 1000 graduate students pursue master’s and doctoral degrees, and the School’s 300 multi-disciplinary faculty members work in more than 100 countries around the world, addressing such issues as infectious and chronic diseases, health promotion and disease prevention, environmental health, maternal and child health, health over the life course, health policy, and public health preparedness. www.mailman.columbia.edu

Columbia University Medical Center

Columbia University Medical Center provides international leadership in basic, pre-clinical and clinical research, in medical and health sciences education, and in patient care. The medical center trains future leaders and includes the dedicated work of many physicians, scientists, public health professionals, dentists, and nurses at the College of Physicians & Surgeons, the Mailman School of Public Health, the College of Dental Medicine, the School of Nursing, the biomedical departments of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and allied research centers and institutions. Established in 1767, Columbia’s College of Physicians & Surgeons was the first institution in the country to grant the M.D. degree. Among the most selective medical schools in the country, the school is home to the largest medical research enterprise in New York State and one of the largest in the country. For more information, please visit www.cumc.columbia.edu.

Children’s Health Fund (CHF) (www.childrenshealthfund.org)

Founded in 1987 by singer/songwriter Paul Simon and pediatrician/advocate Irwin Redlener, MD, Children's Health Fund (CHF) is the nation's leading pediatric provider of mobile-based health care for homeless and low-income children and their families. CHF's mission is to bring health care directly to those in need through the development and support of innovative medical programs, response to public health crises, and the promotion of guaranteed access to health care for all children. Teams of dedicated medical professionals in CHF's 24 pediatric programs in 15 states and the District of Columbia have brought essential primary care services through more than 2 million patient visits.