The LuLac Edition #2086, June 11th, 2012

THIS IS HELPING PENNSYLVANIA  

With a decision from the Supreme Court looming large, this came through the LuLac E Mail machine this week regarding how the Affordable Health Care Act will impact Pennsylvanians.

HEALTH CARE LAW DELIVERS FREE PREVENTIVE SERVICES TO 573,472 PEOPLE WITH MEDICARE IN PENNSYLVANIA 

The Centers for Medicare  & Medicaid Services (CMS) today announced that the Affordable Care Act helped 573,472 people in Pennsylvania with original Medicare receive at least one preventive service at no cost to them during the first five months of 2012. This includes 32,573 who have taken advantage of the Annual Wellness Visit provided by the Affordable Care Act. Nationally, 14,297,266 people in Medicare received at least one free preventive service during the first five months of this year. This includes 1,100,592 people who benefited from the Annual Wellness Visit. In 2011, 32.5 million people in Medicare received one or more preventive benefits free of charge. “Thanks to the health care law, millions of Americans are getting cancer screenings, mammograms and other preventive services for free,” said CMS Acting Administrator Marilyn Tavenner. “These free preventive services are helping people in Medicare stay healthy and lower their health care costs.” One of the major goals of the Affordable Care Act is to help people stay healthy by giving them the tools they need to take charge of their own health and prevent health problems before they happen. Prior to 2011, people with Medicare faced cost-sharing for many preventive benefits such as cancer screenings. Under the Affordable Care Act, preventive benefits are offered free of charge to beneficiaries, with no deductible or co-pay, so that cost is no longer a barrier for seniors who want to stay healthy and treat problems early. The law also added an important new service for people with Medicare — an Annual Wellness Visit with the doctor of their choice— at no cost to beneficiaries.

17th District Congressional candidate Matt Cartwright. 

CARTWRIGHT URGES BILL PASSAGE 

17th District Congressional candidate Matt Cartwright has urged current members of congress to pass the transportation bill. As usual, the Congress is deadlocked and Cartwright outlines the reasons why the bill should be passed. 
With depressed monthly job numbers released last week, showing only about 69,000 jobs created in May, many elected officials have gone on the defensive and expressed concern. I have a suggestion: pass the bi-partisan Senate transportation bill. Our nation's unemployment rate currently lingers above 8 percent. But it's even worse for the construction industry, with a jobless rate that currently exceeds 14 percent. Passing a bill that funds infrastructure projects across our Nation will directly employ workers to build and repair roads, bridges, railways, runways and ports. At the height of the construction season in America, with communities everywhere in need of infrastructure improvements, numerous projects large and small are stalled for lack of funding. All Congress has to do to add nearly 1 million American jobs? Pass the transportation bill. At the same time House Republicans are criticizing a lack of jobs, they are holding the largest job-creating bill hostage. Republicans in the Senate, the Democrats in the Senate, the President of the United States, and the House Democrats all support this bipartisan bill. This is all eerily similar to the irresponsible debt limit debate of last summer, which resulted in Standard & Poor's credit rating agency downgrading the long-term credit rating of the United States government for the first time in its history, from AAA to AA+. In February, the U.S. Senate overwhelmingly (75 Senators voted yes) passed bi-partisan legislation – "Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century"(MAP-21) – that calls for $109 billion over two years for the nation's transportation infrastructure needs. This legislation will continue to support an additional 1.9 million American jobs, while supporting or creating 73,700 in Pennsylvania. However, the House of Representatives has failed to pass this immensely important transportation bill. As a House-Senate conference committee has been trying to reach agreement on a bill to take effect after the June 30th extension ends, the negotiations are getting bogged down unnecessarily. That's because rather than serving the American people by passing the bi-partisan Senate bill, Republican House lawmakers want to force controversial concessions. At a time when our nation's infrastructure is literally deteriorating, our economy is sluggishly moving along and Americans need work, we need leadership. We need a leader who will fight to bring jobs home, right here, in Northeastern Pennsylvania.