For Immediate Release: June 15, 2006

GALVESTON, Texas — Do you have an opinion on how to improve the U.S. health care system? If so, your government wants to hear it.

New recommendations to create a more workable health care system in the U.S. are online, courtesy of the Citizen’s Health Care Working Group, a national group authorized by Congress to study practical improvements. Comments may be submitted at www.CitizensHealthCare.gov.or by e-mail to CitizensHealth@ahrq.gov. Comments may be mailed to Citizen Health Care, Attn: Interim Recommendations, 7201 Wisconsin Ave., Suite 575, Bethesda, MD 20814.

The recommendations, announced June 1, include such key concerns as availability of affordable health care, “core” health benefits and end-of-life care. They are based on input from more than 20,000 citizens, including Galveston County residents, collected from a national online survey in May and from community groups.

“Many of the same opinions voiced locally were reflected in the national recommendations, including the need for an equitable health care system in which everyone has access to certain defined benefits,” said Jennifer Mineo of the Center to Eliminate Health Disparities at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.

UTMB has conducted focus groups and polls with Galveston County residents on frontline health concerns, Mineo said.

The Citizens’ Health Care Working Group recommends the following:

• Making it public policy that all Americans have affordable health care
• Creating a core benefits package for all Americans
• Guaranteeing financial protection against high health care costs
• Developing integrated community health networks
• More intensive efforts to improve quality of care and efficiency
• New ways to provide and finance palliative care, hospice and other services so that people living with advanced, incurable conditions have access to them in the environment they choose

Final recommendations, expected in September, will be forwarded to President. Bush for review and to Congress for hearings.

The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston
Public Affairs Office
301 University Boulevard, Suite 3.102
Galveston, Texas 77555-0144
www.utmb.edu