Weekly Talking Points:  October 17, 2001
Democrats: Fighting for Quality Health Care

Currently, health insurance costs in New Jersey are the 4th highest in the 
nation.  That is why Democrats are committed to providing all New Jerseyans 
with more affordable, quality health care.  Democrats want to make health 
care more accessible, address the current nursing shortage, improve cancer 
prevention efforts, and eliminate HMO discrimination.  After eight years of 
Republican leadership, New Jerseyans are still paying some of the highest 
health care costs in the nation but are receiving some of the worst care 
from HMO's.


DEMOCRATS SUPPORT A PATIENT'S RIGHT TO SUE
* Hold HMOs accountable for the quality of care they provide.
* Provide patients the right to sue when HMOs make decisions that result in 
the denial of medically necessary services.

DEMOCRATS WANT MORE AFFORDABLE, ACCESSIBLE HEALTH CARE
* Construct school based health clinics so children get the health care they 
need where they spend the most time.
* Improve the administration of NJFamilyCare, the state's subsidized health 
insurance program, so that more children and families benefit from health 
coverage. It is estimated that 259,000 children in NJ will be without 
healthcare, many of which are eligible for NJFamilyCare but cannot enroll 
because of administrative difficulties.
* Republicans cost the state $10 million in federal NJKidCare funds because 
too few children enrolled in the state subsidized healthcare program. More 
recently, FamilyCare announced it would no longer cover single, childless 
adults.

DEMOCRATS WANT TO IMPROVE THE WORK ENVIRONMENT OF NURSES
* Ban mandatory overtime.  By forcing our nurses to work long, overtime 
hours, hospitals are driving qualified people out of the profession and 
putting health care professionals and patients at risk of medical errors.
* Allow nursing schools to expand enrollment, introduce loan redemption and 
scholarship programs and work with hospitals to develop creative ways to 
attract students to the profession. According to NJ Colleagues in Caring, NJ 
will need approximately 18% more registered nurses to fill vacant positions 
by 2006 and 30% more by 2020.
* Make hospitals safer for both health care workers and patients by 
establishing staffing ratios.

DEMOCRATS WANT TO ELIMINATE HMO DISCRIMINATION
* Provide contraceptive parity to women-Viagra is covered by insurance 
companies but birth control is not.  Our Republican opponent does not 
support contraceptive parity.
* Allow women to visit an OBGYN without a referral.

DEMOCRATS WILL WORK TO INCREASE CANCER PREVENTION
* Increase funding for mammogram screenings-NJ has the lowest rate in the 
nation of recent mammograms for women over 65 and the 3rd highest rate of 
breast cancer in the country.
* Create a task force that will identify cancer clusters, bring increased 
screening to these areas to provide early detection and analyze data to 
identify where new ones may be forming.
* Support legislation requiring insurers to pay for colorectal exams. 
Colorectal cancer is the #2 cancer killer in New Jersey, behind lung cancer. 
But, if caught early, 90% of men and women stricken with colorectal cancer 
can survive.


_________________________________________________________________________
Democratic candidates across the state are unified under the 2001 Victory 
Statewide Coordinated Campaign.  Volunteer opportunities are available in 
each of our field offices in every county in the state.
For more information, please call (732) 726-9101.

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-PAID FOR BY NEW JERSEY DEMOCRATIC STATE COMMITTEE/ 2001 VICTORY-