2021 State Healthcare Priorities
No matter where we live, what we look like, or how much money we have in our wallets, everyone gets sick. Illness reminds us that at our core, we’re all human. COVID-19 has made it clear that our wellbeing is tied together.
At TakeAction Minnesota, we believe our healthcare system should make us healthier, center people, and leave nobody out. We’re clear that the pathway to universal, affordable, accessible health care is through public insurance, not the failing private market.
But right now, Minnesotans aren’t getting the care they need, when they need it. Recent data from Altarum Healthcare Value Hub shows that, in the past year, almost half (45 percent) of Minnesotans skipped or delayed healthcare due to cost, including 21 percent who cut pills in half, skipped doses of medicine, or did not fill a prescription.
In 2021, we’re organizing to lower prescription drug costs and to expand MinnesotaCare with a public option. Together, we can ensure everyone has access to affordable medicine and care they need, regardless of age, income, or immigration status. 91 percent of Minnesotans agree: it’s time for the government to take action to ensure Minnesotans have access to affordable healthcare.
MinnesotaCare Expansion and Public Option
Today, thousands of Minnesotans are excluded from health care coverage because of their immigration status. Across the state, thousands of Minnesotans including farmers, small business owners, artists, and young families do not have an affordable health care option on the private health insurance market, paying $30,000 or more in deductibles before their health coverage kicks in. This is wrong.
In 2021, the State Legislature can expand MinnesotaCare with a public option (H.F. 11/S.F. 1029). This bill expands and maintains high quality, affordable health insurance coverage through MinnesotaCare and more:
- Creates a MinnesotaCare public option, expanding eligibility for any Minnesotan who does not have employer based health insurance coverage
- Includes small business group coverage for employers with no more than 50 employees
- Expands federal funding and protections – it’s paid for by state, federal, and individual contributions
- Expands coverage to Minnesotans regardless of their immigration status and people who are not eligible for MinnesotaCare because their spouse’s employer offers insurance that is not affordable (fixes the ‘family glitch’)
Access to Affordable Medicine
Everyone deserves access to medicine that helps them stay healthy and be well.
We’re all footing the bill for of an out-of-control health care industry that price-gouges life-saving medicine like insulin. It’s time to #ChangetheRules. In 2021, TakeAction Minnesota is fighting to:
- Rein in out of control drug costs by establishing a Prescription Drug Affordability Board (H.F. 801 S.F. 1121)/ – this is a top recommendation made by the Attorney General’s bipartisan Task Force on Lowering Pharmaceutical Drug Prices Report.
- Expand the power of the Attorney General’s office to address price-gouging of prescription drugs
- Support the state in negotiating the price of all publicly purchased drugs through a unified benefits package. (H.F. 8)
Drugs don’t work if people can’t afford them. Make your voice heard. Share your healthcare story with us today.
Take Action Now
Email your legislator today and make them clear on the will of the people: we’re all in for healthcare for all. Tell them to support the Prescription Drug Affordability Board bill and MinnesotaCare Public Option this session and what’s at stake.
