Community leaders engage lawmakers on the value Medicare Advantage

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Reviewed

May 1 2007

More than three dozen community leaders from across the country have come together to actively engage lawmakers on the value Medicare Advantage provides to vulnerable seniors in their communities.

The Minority Advisory Committee to the Coalition for Medicare Choices includes former elected officials, civil rights advocates, labor and business leaders who have coalesced to protect low-income and minority seniors from cuts to their Medicare benefits.

"Seniors deserve affordable, high-quality healthcare. Any cuts to Medicare Advantage would drive up healthcare costs for those who can least afford it," said Committee member Willie Hampton, President of the Service Employees International Union Local 79 in Michigan.

A recent AHIP analysis of government data demonstrates the importance of Medicare Advantage to low-income and minority seniors. According to the most recent publicly available data, 49 percent of all Medicare Advantage beneficiaries had incomes of less than $20,000. Sixty-eight percent of minority Medicare Advantage enrollees had incomes below $20,000.

"How could Congress consider cutting funding for a healthcare program that keeps many low-income seniors in our community healthy? If Congress cuts funding, you can be sure that many low-income and minority seniors will be forced to pay more money for less benefits," said Committee member Jaime Martinez, President of League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) Council #4626 in San Antonio, Texas.

The Minority Advisory Committee comes together as Congress is crafting budget and health care legislation. Committee members will reach out to members of Congress and provide guidance as the Coalition for Medicare Choices conducts grassroots efforts in their communities.

"Balancing the federal budget on the backs of our seniors who count on Medicare health plans is unacceptable," said Eligio Marin, Chairman of LULAC Illinois.

The Coalition for Medicare Choices is the leading national grassroots organization for beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Advantage.

The Committee includes:

Isabel Rubio, Executive Director / Hispanic Interest Coalition of Alabama; Alabama
Ralph Miller, Executive Director, Latino's for America; California
Steven Ybarra, National DNC Committeeman; California
Angel Luevano, State Director of California LULAC; California
Wellington Webb, former Mayor of Denver, former Regional Director of HHS; Colorado
Hilary Shelton, Director, Washington Bureau, NAACP; District of Columbia
Kevin Parker, COO, National Coalition on Black Civic Participation; District of Columbia
Dr. Elena Rios, M.D., M.S.P.H., President & CEO, National Hispanic Medical Association (NHMA); District of Columbia
Alex Penelas, former Mayor of Miami-Dade County; Florida
Angel Gonzalez, Chairman, Miami Commission; Florida
Helen Butler, Executive Director, Coalition for the People's Agenda; Georgia
Bobbie Paul, Executive Director, Women's Action for New Direction (WAND) Atlanta; Georgia
John Evans, President, Operation LEAD (Leadership to End All Discrimination); Former President of Dekalb County NAACP; Georgia
Pat DeBonnett, Former E.D. of the Greater Roseland Community Development Corporation (CDC); Illinois
Bertand Murrell, President/CEO, Murrell Inc.; Illinois
David Chang, Korean American Leadership Council; Illinois
Eligio Marin, Chairman, LULAC Illinois; Illinois
Joyce Chapman, President/CEO, Pullman Community Development Corporation (CDC); Illinois
Rev. Dr. Christopher A. Hill Jr., Monumental Baptist Church; Illinois
William Lantigua, State Representative, Chair of Massachusetts Black Caucus; Massachusetts
Jerome Warfield, Pastor, Mt. Vernon Baptist Church; Michigan
Lisa Johannon, Executive Director, CDC of Detroit; Michigan
Ron Clark, former Detroit television newscaster; Michigan
Tenesha Grimmett, Community organizer; Michigan
Willie Hampton, President, SEIU Local 79; Michigan
Carlos Perez, President, Dominican American Foundation; New Jersey
Christian Estevez, President, Organization for Latino Advancement; New Jersey
Pastor Keith Jones, Pastor, Grace Worship Center; New Jersey
Ulysses Lee, E.D., Black Americans Lobbying for Leadership of Tomorrow (BALLOT); New Jersey
Claudia Briggs, Nevada State Education Association; Nevada
Basil Smikle Jr., Basil Smikle & Associates LLC; New York
Chung Seto, The Chung Seto Group; New York
Councilman Juan Ramos, City Councilman-at-Large; Pennsylvania
Pedro Paulo Bretz, Executive Director, The Hispanic Center; Pennsylvania
Willie Lyles III, Executive Director, The Freedom Foundation; South Carolina
Wanda Stringfellow, Mayor, City of Chester; South Carolina
Jaime Martinez, President, LULAC Chapter 2646 of San Antonio, TX; Texas
Marsha Catron, Board of Hispanic Caucus Chairs; Texas
Raymond Miller, former President of Black Veterans of Washington; Washington
Vivian Caver, former State Representative, former Chair of the Seattle Human Rights Department; Washington
Robert Wilkerson, Chief Advisor on Senior Issues, Beloit Chapter of NAACP; Wisconsin
Betty Villalobos-Hallman, Executive Director, El Centro of the Hispanic Community of Beloit; Wisconsin