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Contact: Media Relations Officer; Alicia Mitchell, AHA, 202-626-2339, amitche1@aha.org; Dan Boston, FAH, 202-624-1522, dboston@fahs.com
Coalition to Protect America's Health Care Launches New Ad To Press For Restored BBA Funding This Year
Washington, D.C., November 10, 2000--The Coalition to Protect America's Health Care will begin airing a new ad Sunday, Nov. 12, urging the public to ask Congress and the White House to pass BBA relief legislation now in the final days of this session. The Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (BBA) relief package, embedded in legislation that was among Congress' unfinished business, has been on hold since prior to Election Day. Congress is scheduled to return on Monday, Nov. 13.
The ad is the fourth in the Coalition's campaign, launched in late July, to educate the public about hospitals' fragile financial situation and what that means for the patients and communities they serve. The Coalition involves a broad-based group of more than 500 hospitals and health systems, national, state and local hospital associations, and businesses, and is leading the charge for additional relief from the deep Medicare cuts in the BBA.
Entitled "Getting Worse," the ad features Claire Panke, a registered nurse who works on the front line of the crisis in American hospitals. "If Congress doesn't do their job, my patients will suffer," Panke says, as she urges the public to tell Congress and the White House to restore funding to the nation's hospitals before they adjourn.
In 1997, Congress and the White House cut hospital funding to help balance the budget, but these reductions have been far more severe than anticipated. Although Washington last year provided some relief from the unintended BBA cuts, hospitals need additional funding to continue providing the vital services patients and communities rely on. The ad will air on national cable, in certain local broadcast markets, and on Washington D.C. radio and print. The Washington. D.C. based communications firm of McCarthy, Marcus and Hennings is developing the Coalition advertising.
Editor's Note: VHS or Beta format tapes will be available upon request.
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