Families USA

Families USA a nonprofit, nonpartisan consumer health advocacy organization, is a leading national voice for health care consumers. The organization is dedicated to the achievement of high-quality, affordable health care and improved health for all.[1]

Families USA
Families USA Foundation is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, 501(c)3 organization
Founded1981
HeadquartersWashington D.C.
Revenue3,172,965 US dollar (2016) 
Websitefamiliesusa.org/ 

Families USA was co-founded in 1981 by Ronald Pollack, its first executive director, and Philippe Villers, the organization's current president.[2] Families USA is an influential advocate in Washington, D.C., and has played a leading role on virtually every major piece of health care legislation, especially the Affordable Care Act (ACA — also known as "Obamacare"), the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), numerous Medicaid measures, and the Medicare Part D plan.[3][4][5][6][7]

President Barack Obama credited Families USA with playing an instrumental role in promoting the enactment of the ACA and for the organization’s work helping to implement and protect the historic health legislation.[8] On a printed copy of the ACA displayed in Families USA’s office, Obama wrote “To Ron and Families USA – You made this happen!”[9]

Families USA is one of the leaders of a national campaign to persuade states to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, producing analysis documenting the many benefits of extending health coverage for state economies and low-income people.[10][11][12] As a result, the organization plays an active role in promoting national and state-specific improvements in this safety-net program.

Families USA has organized several structured dialogues on key health care issues among diverse stakeholder organization leaders, including those representing insurers, hospitals, physicians, pharmaceutical companies, business, labor, and consumers. One such dialogue led to the creation of the Campaign for Children’s Health Care, which successfully pushed to extend CHIP.[13] Another set of dialogues sought and achieved common ground on extending health coverage to the uninsured.[14] A more recent dialogue developed proposals for promoting increased quality care at lower costs.[14]

On November 23, 2016, Vanity Fair reported that shortly after Donald Trump won the 2016 presidential election, Families USA held a conference call with more than 1,000 people from all 50 states to discuss efforts to keep the Affordable Care Act alive.[15] In 2017, Frederick Isasi was appointed Executive Director of Families USA.[16]

Mission

Families USA’s purpose is to ensure that every individual in the nation has access to the best health and health care. Their work is focused on making specific, strategic, and systemic improvements to the health and health care of the nation—improvements that make a real difference in people’s lives, particularly the most vulnerable in the nation.[17]

Families USA employs a goal-oriented theory of change; believing that achieving change rests on the ability to identify moments on the community, state, or national level when the simultaneous activation of diverse coalitions (in terms of ethnicity, economic status, and other demographic dimensions, as well as political and disciplinary perspectives), together with the application of a full range of policy and advocacy expertise—practical policy analysis, inclusive decision maker outreach, and strategic public communications—can make change a reality.

Families USA’s work is focused on leveraging the power of government and government programs as well as private health care funding streams to drive toward sustainability. Families USA advances its mission by combining policy expertise and partnerships with community, state, and national leaders to forge transformational solutions that improve the health and health care of American families.[17]

Background

Families USA’s co-founder, Ronald Pollack, has created a number of other organizations. For 10 years he served as the founding executive director of the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC), an organization devoted to ending hunger in America. At FRAC, he successfully argued two cases on the same day in the U.S. Supreme Court that protected food aid for low-income people,[18] and he argued the federal court case that initiated the Supplemental Feeding Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC).[18] Pollack is the founding and current board chair of Enroll America, an organization dedicated to enrolling people in health coverage who were previously uninsured.[19][20]

Pollack was Dean of the Antioch University School of Law.[21] He was appointed by President Bill Clinton to be the sole consumer representative on the Presidential Advisory Commission on Consumer Protection and Quality in the Health Care Industry, which developed the Patients’ Bill of Rights.[22]

The Hill named Pollack one of the nine top nonprofit lobbyists.[23][24][25] Modern Healthcare named him one of the 100 Most Powerful People in Health Care.[26] National Journal named Pollack one of the top 25 players in Congress, the Administration, and the lobbying community on Medicare prescription drug benefits.[27]

Focus Areas

Families USA's work centers on the following four focus areas for achieving a nation where everyone has access to the best health and health care.[28]

Coverage
"We believe that a critical aspect of good health for all families is the ability to obtain comprehensive and affordable health insurance coverage, and we continue to lead efforts on the national and state levels to protect and expand such coverage. We produce research, analysis, and messaging to defend and strengthen the Medicaid program and the Affordable Care Act (ACA). This includes working in a nonpartisan manner with community leaders, governors, and state legislators to identify innovative ways to expand coverage for low-income people and other vulnerable populations, as well as to ensure health insurance works for all socioeconomic levels in the nation. "

Equity
"One of Families USA’s most important social justice missions is building a nation where no one faces barriers to a healthy life because of who they are or where they live. To achieve this goal, we are working with a highly diverse coalition of partners, including people of color, people with disabilities, rural communities, ethnic communities, and others to create a policy agenda to address inequities. We also are increasingly focused on addressing the social determinants of health by exploring upstream approaches, such as those employing community health worker models that protect and improve health, thereby preventing the need for medical care."

Value
"Our current health care system is riddled with inefficiencies that increase costs and harm patients. At Families USA, we are working hard to remedy this problem with a robust health transformation agenda designed to ensure all families get the support they need to live healthy lives, including receiving high-quality, low-cost, consumer-centered health care. A key part of this work is helping state consumer leaders share best practices and learn from one another."

Consumer Engagement
"Too often, the consumer voice is an afterthought in local, state, and national efforts to reshape our health care system. Families USA is working to address this problem by researching and giving broad voice to consumer perspectives, and exploring new ways that enable consumers to engage on health care issues."

Achievements/Accreditation
  • Obama credited Families USA with playing an instrumental role in promoting the enactment of the ACA and for the organization’s work helping to implement and protect the historic health legislation.[8] On a printed copy of the ACA displayed in Families USA’s office, Obama wrote “To Ron and Families USA – You made this happen!”[9]

See also

References
  1. Miller, Naseem S. "More than 100,000 in Central Florida could lose Obamacare subsidies". orlandosentinel.com. Retrieved 2019-07-02.
  2. "Imminent Court Ruling Could Cripple Obamacare". Newsmax. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  3. "House Lawmakers Unveil Funding Details for SGR Replacement Deal - California Healthline". www.californiahealthline.org. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  4. "Health care reform up in air as economy sinks - USATODAY.com". usatoday30.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  5. "Prognosis Unclear". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  6. "Pelosi tries to stamp out abortion fight on Medicare fix". POLITICO. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  7. "No we all don't want Dean as HHS Secretary". Daily Kos. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  8. Archived copy, archived from the original on 2018-12-23, retrieved 2016-01-07CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  9. "Imgur: The most awesome images on the Internet". Imgur. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  10. "Childless adults biggest winners under Medicaid expansion". FierceHealthPayer. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  11. "Medicaid Expansion Helps Low-Wage Workers: Non-Expansion States". Families USA. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  12. "A 50-State Look at Medicaid Expansion". Families USA. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  13. "Campaign for Children's Health Care: About Us". www.childrenshealthcampaign.org. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  14. "After Obamacare: The next Democratic health agenda". Vox. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  15. Tracy, Abigail. "Why Obamacare Could Be Donald Trump's Undoing". The Hive.
  16. "Families USA names Frederick Isasi executive director". Modern Healthcare. 5 January 2017.
  17. https://familiesusa.org/about
  18. "Ron Pollack Bio from House of Representatives" (PDF).
  19. "Campaign aims to educate uninsured about ACA coverage options". Modern Healthcare. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  20. "Obamacare group slashes staff". POLITICO. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  21. "Prof. Wade Henderson and Former Antioch Dean Ron Pollack Opinion in The Washington Post - UDC David A. Clarke School of Law". www.law.udc.edu. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  22. Pear, Robert (1997-03-27). "Clinton Names Panel to Draft Health Consumer Bill of Rights". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  23. "The Big Fix: Health Care". WAMU 88.5. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  24. Ruyle, Megan. "2010 Top Lobbyists". TheHill. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  25. "Top of the Hill". Modern Healthcare. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  26. "100 Most Powerful People in Healthcare (text list)". Modern Healthcare. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  27. "Ron Pollack, Executive Director of Families USA". Voices in Leadership. Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  28. "Four Focus Areas of Our Work". Families USA. 2018-07-11. Retrieved 2019-07-02.
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