By Crystal Swann
July 27, 2009

President Barack Obama made reforming the health care system his number one priority and mayors are committed to helping him achieve his goal. Local economies depend on it. USCM Health Reform Task Force Chair San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom hosted an urgent conference call July 24 with mayors and Cheryl Parker Rose, Director of Intergovernmental Affairs for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, to stress the urgency of getting health care reform completed this year and to encourage mayor to take an active role in their communities by hosting local events, adopting local resolutions and voicing their concerns in local papers and blogs.

Currently, local governments are estimated to be the fourth largest employer in the nation. Cities like New York spend an estimated $4.4 billion on health care coverage for current employees and legacy employees and their beneficiaries. Additionally, public hospitals and clinics, community health centers and other safety net providers spend billions to provide care to millions of underserved people in their cities.

These are big numbers when taking into account the current economic stress facing states, local governments and individuals. Recent data indicate that 60 percent of bankruptcies in the U.S. are due to medical costs; an additional four million Americans have lost health benefits due to losing a job; and federal and state governments pay 75 percent of the $56 billion in uncompensated care provided to the uninsured.

Both the House and Senate bills address some of those pressures, including the creation of a series of health exchanges, creating a public plan; requiring individuals to purchase insurance, except in hardship cases and requiring all but the smallest companies to offer coverage to their workers or pay a penalty. The House bill also includes a tax on the wealthiest households.

Currently, the House Education and Labor Committee, and the House Ways and Means Committee have approved their bills; the House Energy and Commerce Committee has postponed its markup on its health care bill this week. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee approved its health care reform bill. The Senate Finance Committee, which has jurisdiction over how to pay for health care reform, is still negotiating. The hope is for the committee to markup and pass its portion of the bill before the August recess.

Although President Obama expressed his strong hope for legislation to pass both chambers before the August recess, the Senate leadership indicated that it would not vote on health care reform until after Congress returns in the fall.