The Center for Voter Deliberation of Northern Virginia

Health Care Forums Acknowledge Fears and Favor a Step Forward

A chance to be heard is a reason to listen.  That's why a hundred fifty-five people from DC, Maryland and Virginia came together, on four occasions in 2009, to talk in small, moderated groups about Coping with the Cost of Health Care. 

Take a look at the two minute video summary of the forums.  Let us know what you think by answering the questions below it.

Thank you to everyone who joined our health care forums in 2009 and helped make them worthwhile.

What is the most important aspect of health care policy reform that was part of the national debate in 2009?
Click ONLY ONE answer below to describe YOUR OWN THINKING ONLY with regard to the most important aspect of health care policy reform debated in 2009.	1. Dawning awareness of this issue 2. Feeling greater urgency about this issue 3. Looking for solutions to this issue 4. Wishful thinking about the issue: My preferred solution probably has a downside I haven't considered 5. Weighing the choices: I am weighing the pros and cons for dealing with the issue in any number of ways 6. Taking a stand: I am close to understanding what I want to see happen, and what the consequences would be 7. Making a responsible judgment: I know what I want to see happen and I can accept the consequences
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Did you attend one of our forums in 2009?	No Yes, in April at GMU's Prince William Campus Yes, in June at the Big Bear Restaurant Yes, in August at Bus Boys and Poets Yes, in September at the Prince William Area Commission on Aging

Form provided by Freedback.

Safe Community Coalition Helps Frame Nationwide Discussions on Prevention of Underage Drinking

Many thanks to members of the Safe Community Coalition for their participation in a Thursday November 19 focus group that helped help frame a new discussion guide for nationwide discussions on how to prevent underage drinking.  SCC members can offer additional comments on the draft guide, which is here (PDF), by emailing Bill Corbett.

Safe Community Coalition is a Northern Virginia community organization that works to help youth make responsible decisions that keep them safe, healthy and free from alcohol and drug use. 

The discussion guide on underage drinking will be published and used in 2010 by the National Issues Forums Institute.  National Issues Forums (NIF) is a nonpartisan, nationwide network of locally sponsored public forums for the consideration of public policy issues. NIF affiliates, like the Center for Voter Deliberation of Northern Virginia, bring people together to reason, talk and take action on locally chosen topics of vital interest. 

If you or your organization are interested in organizing or taking part in a forum in 2010 on prevention of underage drinking, please contact CVDNVA.  We would be happy to work with you to organize a local forum - whether for fifteen people, a hundred fifty, or some number in between - on this vital community issue.  CVDNVA is a volunteer-run, nonprofit and nonpartisan organization. 

Prince William Study Circles is 2009 Virginia Neighborhood Organization of the Year

The 10th Annual Virginia Statewide Neighborhood Conference has named Prince William Study Circles its 2009 Virginia Neighborhood Organization of the Year.  Click here for PWSC Director Cindy Brookshire's remarks and more information about the award.  A list of past conference award winners is here.

I am pleased that the Center is among a number of local partner organizations that have helped Cindy, to whom most of the credit belongs.  Among the other indispensable contributors are: Charvis Campbell of George Mason University; Kisha Wilson-Segunro of City of Manassas Neighborhood Services; Dexter Fox of Unity in the Community; John Landesman of Everyday Democracy; and Jim Snow, dedicated volunteer. 

Among the most important people, the facilitators and circle participants, Chris Pannell stands out.  She has been a stalwart contributor and, like Cindy, an inspiration to the rest of us.

Congratulations all.

-- Bill Corbett

Cut health care costs, says Prince William area forum

Twenty members and friends of the Prince William Area Commission on Aging convened Tuesday September 22, for the Center's fourth National Issues Forum on health care, this time at the Prince William Senior Citizens Center in Manassas. 

Two-thirds of the participants afterward completed a survey, in which they named the most important issues to them, and the trade-offs they would accept in combination with their preferred outcome. 

The respondents were almost exclusively concerned with controlling the rising cost of health care.  Tort reform, more effective denial of unpaid care to undocumented immigrants, reform and audit of existing government programs and the minimization of government's role in health care were the favored means to bring costs under control.

The focus of this survey research is to gauge not just the character of views held, but the depth of those opinions.  For example, almost all of the survey respondents reported that they have moved beyond a basic awareness of the issues involved in health care reform.  However, only a few characterized themselves as fully grasping the consequences of their preferences and ready to accept the necessary trade-offs.  On average the respondents were two-thirds of the way to committing themselves.  At this stage, most of them are weighing the pros, cons and trade-offs involved in health care reform.

The American Townhall on Health Care at the National Mall is Saturday September 12

You are invited to the cross-partisan American Townhall on Health Care.  The forum is open from 10 am to 6 pm and participants may come and go at any time thanks to the rolling format.  The event will be held on the National Mall between 3rd and 4th Streets (just south of the East Wing of the National Gallery of Art).  Using Metro is highly recommended due to all the demonstrations that day.

The townhall coincides with major Republican and Democratic health care events on the National Mall.  One of the townhall's aims is to demonstrate that dialogue is possible, even in this highly charged environment.  It is free and open to the public.  For more information, visit the website of The American Townhall on Health Care.

Busboys & Poets hosts National Issues Forum on health care reform

Many thanks to the one hundred people who convened for the Center's third National Issues Forum on health care, this time at Busboys and Poets in Washington on Monday August 24. 

One half of the participants in the August 24 forum afterward completed a survey, in which they named the most important issues to them, and the trade-offs they would accept in combination with their preferred outcome.

The respondents were most concerned, unsurprisingly, with resolving inequality of health care and controlling rising costs.

The focus of our survey research is to gauge not just the character of views held, but the depth of those opinions.  For example, most of the survey respondents reported that they had moved well beyond a simple or basic awareness of the issues involved in health care reform.  However, most were not ready to commit themselves to a particular health care reform solution.  On average the respondents were two-thirds of the way to committing themselves.  At this stage, most of them are weighing the pros, cons and trade-offs involved in health care reform proposals on the table.

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Governor Howard Dean comes to Busboys and Poets at 14th & V on Tuesday, September 15, from 6:00 to 7:30 pm to talk about his new book on the obstacles to health care reform and what it will take to overcome them:  Howard Dean's Prescription For Real Health Care Reform --  How We Can Achieve Affordable Medical Care for Every American and Make Our Jobs Safer.  Dean argues that for real reform to happen, Americans must have the choice to either keep their existing coverage if they are happy with it, or have the option to select a public plan; and that America must continue to make key investments as President Obama has begun to make in health care information technology to reduce costs and improve the quality of care.

The event is free and open to all.

GMU Prince William Forum on Coping with the Cost of Health Care: Some are Ready to Tackle Equality of Care, But Most are Unsure About How to Restrain Costs

Residents and local experts convened Friday April 3 at George Mason University's Prince William campus for the first in a series of National Issues Forums on health care policy and what to do about rising costs.  Facilitators from CVDNVA helped the small forum deliberate for ninety minutes on three approaches to what should be done. 

Afterward, each person completed a survey in which they not only named the most important issues, but also described their appreciation of the trade-offs at stake. 

The matter named important by the most participants was how to improve access to health care treatment.  They called for universal health care coverage as a right, or other steps to provide more equal coverage while protecting choice of medical care provider.  Several of those surveyed felt they had considered the issue sufficiently, and understood the trade-offs well enough, that they were ready to see the issue resolved.

The members of the forum were much less sure that they knew enough about how to resolve the problem of rapidly rising health care costs.  Only one participant felt sure about what should be done: improve the accountability of health care providers and the transparency of what they charge, whether they are drugmakers, HMOs/PPOs, physicians or insurance companies.

Before coming to these conclusions, the group deliberated on three approaches to addressing the health care problem.

• Reduce the threat of financial ruin.  The costs of illness make people feel vulnerable with no control over their future.  They worry they may be wiped out by medical expenses.

• Restrain out-of-control costs.  When faced with the prices of drugs, insurance and medical services, people say they are being ripped off.  Prices are out of control.

• Provide coverage as a right.  High costs mean that some Americans have to choose between eating and taking their medicine.  In the wealthiest nation on Earth, everyone ought to have health care.

To receive information on our next forum, please complete and submit the brief form below.  Thank you for your interest.

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Welcome

The Center for Voter Deliberation of Northern Virginia works to educate the public on the importance of participation in political life, especially young people.  Our educational projects and research are nonpartisan and volunteer-run.  We help communities build social capital -- the ability to set goals together, and the key to achieving them.