<!-- 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 3, 2003				
11:00 a.m.							      CONTACTS: 
						   Kimberly Soenen, PNHP 
									312.782.6006
kimberlysoenen@pnhp.org
Joel Segal, Office of Rep. John Conyers
									202-225-5126
joel.segal@mail.house.gov

Physicians Propose Solution to Rising Health Care Costs and Uninsured 

Introduce National Health Insurance Bill (HR676) in Washington, D.C.


	WASHINGTON, D.C. --- A group of the nation's most prominent physicians and progressive leaders of Congress will hold a press conference briefing Tuesday, February 4, 11am, 2226 Rayburn House Office Building, to unveil a new bill, The United States National Health Insurance Act (HR676), a single-payer national health program. The legislation proposes an effective mechanism for controlling skyrocketing health costs while covering all 42 million uninsured Americans. The bill also restores free choice of physician to patients and provides comprehensive prescription drug coverage to seniors, as well as younger people.

"Good news," says Dr. Quentin Young, convener of the physician panel. "There is now a way to exit the nightmare of a collapsing health system. We no longer have to put up with the outrageous costs that keep millions of Americans from receiving medical care and needed medications.  Nor will tens of thousands of families have to declare bankruptcy over medical bills.  Universal national health insurance (single payer) takes the resources we have in place and deals with them in an intelligent manner, excluding the tragic hemorrhage of resources into non-health entities."

	Dr. Marcia Angell, former editor-in-chief of the New England Journal of Medicine*, is the spokesperson for the Physicians Working Group on Single-Payer National Health Insurance, an ad-hoc collaboration of the nation's top physicians.  Dr. Angell will present the proposal at the briefing.  

	Other members of the group include Dr. Gerald Thomson and Dr. Christine Cassel, former Presidents of the American College of Physicians, the second largest medical association in the country; Dr. Rodney Hood and Dr. Gary Dennis, former Presidents of the National Medical Association; Dr. Elinor Christiansen, immediate Past-President of the American Medical Women's Association; and Dr. Ron Anderson, CEO of Parkland Hospital in Dallas, Texas. (*Affiliations for identification only.  A full list of Working Group members is at the end of this release).

	Representative John Conyers, Dean of the Congressional Black Caucus and ranking minority Member of the House Judiciary Committee will introduce The United States National Health Insurance Act on February 4. A long time advocate of national health insurance, Rep. Conyers closely collaborated with the Physicians Working Group on the bill.

	Additionally, nearly 4,000 individual physicians have endorsed the physicians' proposal including two former Surgeons General (Dr. David Satcher and Dr. Julius Richmond); a  Nobel Laureate (Dr. Bernard Lown); the highly respected authors of major textbooks of surgery and family practice (Dr. William Silen and Dr. Robert Rakel, respectively); and a leading organizer of emergency services in NYC on 9/11(Dr. Lewis Goldfrank, Chairman of Emergency Medicine at New York University).

	Also joining the physicians and Congressmen to endorse the National Health Insurance Act will be Dr. Maya Rockeymoore, Urban League Director of Health Policy; Dean Baker, Co-Director, Center for Economic and Policy Research; and Hillary Shelton, a spokesperson for Julian Bond, Chairman of the NAACP.
	Original Congressional co-sponsors of the NHI bill at press time are: Dennis Kucinich (OH), Luis Guitierrez (IL), Jim McDermott (WA); Bobby Scott (VA); Donna Christensen (Virgin Islands); Barbara Lee (CA); Danny Davis (IL); Major Owens (NY); Jesse Jackson Jr.(IL); Maurice Hinchey (NY); Donald Payne (NJ); Elijah Cummings (MD); Carolyn Kilpatrick (MI); Alcee Hastings (FL); Chaka Fattah (PA); Ed Towns (NY); John Lewis (GA); BennieThompson (MS); Eleanor Holmes-Norton (delegate for DC), and Raul Grijalva (AZ) (listing in formation).

National Health Insurance Act Press Conference
February 4, 2003    11am 
2226 Rayburn House Office Building, Judiciary Committee Room

*Physician Working Group Members

Marcia Angell, MD
Spokesperson
Past Editor
New England Journal of Medicine

Quentin Young, MD
Convener
National Coordinator PNHP
Former President American Public Health Association

Joel Alpert, MD
Former President
American Academy of Pediatrics

Ron Anderson, MD
President and CEO
Parkland Health &Hospital System

Peter Beilenson, MD, MPH
Commissioner
Department of Health, Baltimore

Christine Cassell, MD
Former President
American College of Physicians
Dean, Oregon University School of Medicine

Elinor Christiansen, MD
Past President
American Medical Women's
Association

Olveen Carrasquillo, MD, MPH
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Columbia School of Medicine
Advisory Committee Member
National Hispanic Medical Assn.
Gary Dennis, MD
Former President
National Medical Association

David Himmelstein, MD
Associate Professor of Medicine
Harvard Medical School
Co-Founder, Physicians for a National Health Program

Rodney Hood, MD
Past President of the National Medical Association which represents 
African-American physicians

Edith Rasell, MD, PhD
Minister for Labor Relations in Community and Economic Development for 
the United Church of Christ

Helen Rodriguez-Trias, MD
Past President
American Public Health Association
(recently deceased)

Sindhu Srinivas, MD
Past President
American Medical Student Assn.

Gerald Thomson, MD
Former President
American College of Physicians

Walter Tsou, MD, MPH
Former Commissioner of Health,
Philadelphia

Steffie Woolhandler, MD, MPH
Associate Professor of Medicine
Harvard Medical School


#   #   #

Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP) is a research and education organization with more than 10,000 members representing every state and specialty. PNHP was founded in 1987 and has physician spokespeople across the country. For contact information, call the national headquarters in Chicago at 
(312) 782-6006. Visit us online at pnhp.org.

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<br><br>

<h1 align="center">FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE</h1>
<p>
February 3, 2003, 11:00 a.m.<br>
							      CONTACTS: <br />
						   Kimberly Soenen, PNHP <br />
									312.782.6006<br />
kimberlysoenen@pnhp.org<br /><br>
Joel Segal, Office of Rep. John Conyers<br />
									202-225-5126<br />
joel.segal@mail.house.gov<br />
<br />
<h1>Physicians Propose Solution to Rising Health Care Costs and Uninsured</h1>
<br />
<h1>Introduce National Health Insurance Bill (HR676) in Washington, D.C.</h1>
<br />
<br />
	WASHINGTON, D.C. --- A group of the nation's most prominent physicians and progressive leaders of Congress will hold a press conference briefing Tuesday, February 4, 11am, 2226 Rayburn House Office Building, to unveil a new bill, The United States National Health Insurance Act (HR676), a single-payer national health program. The legislation proposes an effective mechanism for controlling skyrocketing health costs while covering all 42 million uninsured Americans. The bill also restores free choice of physician to patients and provides comprehensive prescription drug coverage to seniors, as well as younger people.<br />
<br />
"Good news," says Dr. Quentin Young, convener of the physician panel. "There is now a way to exit the nightmare of a collapsing health system. We no longer have to put up with the outrageous costs that keep millions of Americans from receiving medical care and needed medications.  Nor will tens of thousands of families have to declare bankruptcy over medical bills.  Universal national health insurance (single payer) takes the resources we have in place and deals with them in an intelligent manner, excluding the tragic hemorrhage of resources into non-health entities."<br />
<br />
	Dr. Marcia Angell, former editor-in-chief of the New England Journal of Medicine*, is the spokesperson for the Physicians Working Group on Single-Payer National Health Insurance, an ad-hoc collaboration of the nation's top physicians.  Dr. Angell will present the proposal at the briefing.  <br />
<br />
	Other members of the group include Dr. Gerald Thomson and Dr. Christine Cassel, former Presidents of the American College of Physicians, the second largest medical association in the country; Dr. Rodney Hood and Dr. Gary Dennis, former Presidents of the National Medical Association; Dr. Elinor Christiansen, immediate Past-President of the American Medical Women's Association; and Dr. Ron Anderson, CEO of Parkland Hospital in Dallas, Texas. (*Affiliations for identification only.  A full list of Working Group members is at the end of this release).<br />
<br />
	Representative John Conyers, Dean of the Congressional Black Caucus and ranking minority Member of the House Judiciary Committee will introduce The United States National Health Insurance Act on February 4. A long time advocate of national health insurance, Rep. Conyers closely collaborated with the Physicians Working Group on the bill.<br />
<br />
	Additionally, nearly 4,000 individual physicians have endorsed the physicians' proposal including two former Surgeons General (Dr. David Satcher and Dr. Julius Richmond); a  Nobel Laureate (Dr. Bernard Lown); the highly respected authors of major textbooks of surgery and family practice (Dr. William Silen and Dr. Robert Rakel, respectively); and a leading organizer of emergency services in NYC on 9/11(Dr. Lewis Goldfrank, Chairman of Emergency Medicine at New York University).<br />
<br />
	Also joining the physicians and Congressmen to endorse the National Health Insurance Act will be Dr. Maya Rockeymoore, Urban League Director of Health Policy; Dean Baker, Co-Director, Center for Economic and Policy Research; and Hillary Shelton, a spokesperson for Julian Bond, Chairman of the NAACP.<br />
<br />
	Original Congressional co-sponsors of the NHI bill at press time are:  Dennis Kucinich (OH), Luis Guitierrez (IL), Jim McDermott (WA); Bobby Scott (VA); Donna Christensen (Virgin Islands); Barbara Lee (CA); Danny Davis (IL); Major Owens (NY); Jesse Jackson Jr.(IL); Maurice Hinchey (NY); Donald Payne (NJ); Elijah Cummings (MD); Carolyn Kilpatrick (MI); Alcee Hastings (FL); Chaka Fattah (PA); Ed Towns (NY); John Lewis (GA); BennieThompson (MS); Eleanor Holmes-Norton (delegate for DC), and Raul Grijalva (AZ) (listing in formation).<br />
<br />
National Health Insurance Act Press Conference<br />
February 4, 2003    11am <br />
2226 Rayburn House Office Building, Judiciary Committee Room<br />
<br />
*Physician Working Group Members<br />
<br />
Marcia Angell, MD<br />
Spokesperson<br />
Past Editor<br />
New England Journal of Medicine<br />
<br />
Quentin Young, MD<br />
Convener<br />
National Coordinator PNHP<br />
Former President American Public Health Association<br />
<br />
Joel Alpert, MD<br />
Former President<br />
American Academy of Pediatrics<br />
<br />
Ron Anderson, MD<br />
President and CEO<br />
Parkland Health &Hospital System<br />
<br />
Peter Beilenson, MD, MPH<br />
Commissioner<br />
Department of Health, Baltimore<br />
<br />
Christine Cassell, MD<br />
Former President<br />
American College of Physicians<br />
Dean, Oregon University School of Medicine<br />
<br />
Elinor Christiansen, MD<br />
Past President<br />
American Medical Women's<br />
Association<br />
<br />
Olveen Carrasquillo, MD, MPH<br />
Assistant Professor of Medicine<br />
Columbia School of Medicine<br />
Advisory Committee Member<br />
National Hispanic Medical Assn.<br />
Gary Dennis, MD<br />
Former President<br />
National Medical Association<br />
<br />
David Himmelstein, MD<br />
Associate Professor of Medicine<br />
Harvard Medical School<br />
Co-Founder, Physicians for a National Health Program<br />
<br />
Rodney Hood, MD<br />
Past President of the National Medical Association which represents <br />
African-American physicians<br />
<br />
Edith Rasell, MD, PhD<br />
Minister for Labor Relations in Community and Economic Development for <br />
the United Church of Christ<br />
<br />
Helen Rodriguez-Trias, MD<br />
Past President<br />
American Public Health Association<br />
(recently deceased)<br />
<br />
Sindhu Srinivas, MD<br />
Past President<br />
American Medical Student Assn.<br />
<br />
Gerald Thomson, MD<br />
Former President<br />
American College of Physicians<br />
<br />
Walter Tsou, MD, MPH<br />
Former Commissioner of Health,<br />
Philadelphia<br />
<br />
Steffie Woolhandler, MD, MPH<br />
Associate Professor of Medicine<br />
Harvard Medical School<br />
<br />
#   #   #<br />
<br />
Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP) is a research and education organization with more than 10,000 members representing every state and specialty. PNHP was founded in 1987 and has physician spokespeople across the country. For contact information, call the national headquarters in Chicago at <br />
(312) 782-6006. Visit us online at pnhp.org.<br />
</p>


<p>*The Working Group members hold a number of distinguished positions, which are not limited to those listed above. The members' positions and affiliations listed here are provided for identification purposes only.

<p>Editor's note: An interview room will be available immediately following the press conference.


<p>Contact:

<p>Kimberly Soenen<br>
PNHP Media Relations<br>
tel:312-782-6006<br>
fax:312-782-6007<br>
mobile:312-946-0938<br>
<a href="mailto:kimberlysoenen@pnhp.org">kimberlysoenen@pnhp.org</a><br>
<a href="http://www.pnhp.org/">www.pnhp.org</a><br>

<p class="footer">Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP) is a physician advocacy organization with 12,000 members who support single-payer health care reform.

<p class="footer">PNHP has been working since 1987 for universal health care. The national office is in Chicago.


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