Public Forum at Gallatin on March 7, one of 14 statewide to focus on access and affordability of health insurance

Area community members interested in the affordability and accessibility of health insurance are invited to a meeting to discuss the issue and possible solutions. The meeting will be on Monday, March 7 at 6:30 p.m. at the Daviess County Library in Gallatin.

The cost of health insurance is increasingly expensive for employers and small businesses. As health care and insurance coverage costs continue to rise, the trend is for fewer people to have access to coverage at work — and more finding the cost of private coverage too expensive. According to the Institute of Medicine report on Insuring America’s Health, this situation is expected to get worse because of budget constraints limiting public programs, rising costs of health care and insurance premiums, continuing unemployment and the increasing number of low-wage jobs.

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services is studying the problem of access and affordability of health insurance in Missouri through a grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The project also will develop and evaluate a wide range of policy options to increase access to affordable health insurance coverage for Missouri citizens. This community forum is one of 14 being held throughout the state to explore several policy options and get citizen input about solutions

“More than a half million Missourians went without health insurance all or part of last year, based on the findings from the 2004 Missouri Health Care Insurance and Access Survey,” said Connie Mihalevich, Section Administrator for the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services. “These people are less likely to have a regular doctor or place to go for health care. That means they are less likely to get preventive health care services, such as well check-ups and screenings. And when they are sick, they wait as long as possible before they seek medical care, often obtaining care in an emergency room which adds to the cost of care.”

“Many of the people in St. Joseph understand these issues first hand,” said Paula Overfelt, Executive Director of the Northwest Missouri AHEC. “The purpose of this meeting is to bring community members from different walks of life together to discuss the issue, weigh the possible solutions and come to some consensus about what solutions will work for Missouri. The opinions and information gathered in these meetings will be shared with the governor and our state legislators.”

The Community Deliberation program of University of Missouri Extension is collaborating on this project. University Extension has trained moderators throughout the state who are skilled in holding public deliberation forums and will be moderating these community forums.

The event is limited to twenty-five participants. Anyone interested in reserving a seat for the forum should contact the Northwest Missouri Area Health Education Center at 816-271-7146.