November 17 Meeting Minutes

PNHP-MN Steering Committee Meeting
November 17, 2009
Strommen Building, St. Paul, Minnesota

1. Present: Laurel Gamm, Paul Pentel, Lindsay Byrnes, Diane Schadewald, Brian Yablon, Chirs Reif, Gillian Schivone, Elizabeth Frost, Ann Settgast, Kip Sullivan, Jim Letts

2. Upcoming events/announcements
a. U of M talk to first-year medical students, Wed Nov 18, 12:15pm, Moos Tower 1-450
b. “Hazardous to Your Health: A Series Investigating Equality and Access to Health Care” at Saint Catherine University; Jeanne d'Arc Auditorium, Whitby Hall
- Racial Disparities & Immigrant Barriers to Care – Wed Nov 18, 7pm
- Economics of Healthcare Reform – Wed Dec 9, 7pm
c. Single-payer network-building retreat hosted by UHCAN – Hospitality Place (20 minutes north of the Twin Cities). Sat Nov 21 – 9am to 6pm with sign-in /coffee/rolls at 8:30am
d. “Courageous Conversations About Health Care”, Tues Dec 1, 7 pm, White Bear Lake Unitarian Universalist Church; 328 Maple Street; Mahtomedi MN 55115 – Our member David Mair will be one of the speakers
e. Piece published in November issue of MN Medicine! 3. Discussion of national reform · PNHP's official position: "Tell the truth: the House bill will not work and is like giving aspirin to a patient with breast cancer". We need to "start from scratch" with Medicare for All. PNHP is not telling members of Congress how to vote on the legislation. Visit the PNHP website and click on “Capitol Hill Updates”.· We discussed the pros and cons of our chapter not urging a no vote on a bill that contains an insurance industry bailout, a tiny PO, and no Kucinich amendment. Kip urged us to at a minimum specify what we don’t like about this legislation in order to engage as many as possible in the realization that the current legislation is likely a “disaster in the making”. He raised his sincere concern re: pre-emption of state efforts, and specifically pointed out that an individual mandate may be the most damaging piece in this regard. Paul pointed out that it is a losing position to propose defeat of the legislation, but rather thinks we should focus on our concerns around pre-emption. · Elizabeth spoke with Dave Hage of the Strib today re: us publishing an op-ed and was given contacts for us to follow-up on. Gillian agreed to take the lead in drafting a piece which we can jointly edit. Jim suggested we start the piece positively by showcasing the good points of the bill, but then lay out the facts in order to educate the reader on why real reform is not accomplished with the legislation. Ultimately we should seek to distance ourselves from the current reform and make sure to avoid confusion that this is actually what single-payer advocates are calling for.· Please see the attached handout with thoughts or talking points on HR 3692· Senator Bernie Sanders will be introducing wording on the Senate side similar to the Kucinich amendment, and it is paramount that we work to support this. Our chapter will work with MUHCC & GMHCC to meet with Senators Franken & Klobuchar on this. To hear Senator Sander’s comments, please visit: http://aiss.enews.senate.gov/t/83494/4466220/2225/0/
4. Target legislator work for the MHP in the 2010 legislative session. We reviewed our list of 13 targeted legislators who sit on committees that will be hearing the MN bill this session. We have two legislators (Jim Vickerman and Julie Bunn) who represent districts in which we have no members. Several present at the meeting indicated they would be willing to do meetinss with these legislators. For those districts in which we do have members, assignments are as follows.
a. Laurel – will be arranging meetings with our members and Senators Ann Rest & Don Betzold
b. Kip – will be contacting our 8 members in Rep. Steve Simon’s district
b. Dave – is in the process of contacting members to meet with Reps. Paul Gardner and Kim Norton
c. Jim – is in the process of contacting members in Senator Katie Sieben’s district
d. Elizabeth – has already made progress on meeting with Rep. Kate Knuth and will be working on Reps. Leon Lillie and Larry Hosch
e. Ann – is in the process of contacting our 13 members in Rep. Tom Huntley’s district

5. Messaging regarding the MHP – Jim reviewed an event held at MUHCC executive director, Amy Lange’s house. We reviewed the video from the House committee hearing last session at which the bill was tabled. We are working to develop strategy to prepare good responses for opposition arguments against the MHP. Jim presented the example of discussion around rationing. Please see the attached document for his articulate response to this concern. Another way to address the concern is to point out that single-payer systems save money by eliminating administrative waste, NOT by denying care. Period.

6. Financial update – treasury: ~ $3000. No planned expenditures at present other than MUHCC annual dues of $250.

7. Outreach to pediatricians – Lyndsay volunteered to investigate possibilities for tabling or presenting to the MN chapter of the AAP. Jim pointed out that tabling this spring at the MAFP spring refresher was one of the best ways we have spent money in terms of adding signers to our resolution. Laurel will be organizing this again and will investigate further the possibility of a single-payer presentation at this meeting in 2010.

8. Website – we agreed to keep our site minimal as there is no need to duplicate the wealth of info present on the national site. However, ideas were suggested such as providing an easier link to the national site and adding a “next meeting” button on the front page. Elizabeth & Ann are updating the “About Us” statement on the home page.

9. Next meeting & speakers training – there is lot of interest in holding a 4-hour training to help prepare members to feel more comfortable presenting the single-payer case to audiences. We are tentatively looking at two Saturdays, 1/9 & 1/16. Please contact us with your interest in attending and your availability for either of these dates.

Meeting Notes Oct 7 2009

PNHP-MN Steering Committee Meeting
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Strommen Building St. Paul

In attendance: Kip Sullivan, David Mair, Sarah Kesler, Elizabeth Frost, Ann Settgast

1. Member reports
a. David reported on his August appearance on a panel on health care disparities hosted by Representative Keith Ellison
b. David and Elizabeth reported on the meeting they had with Senator Franken’s staff; Ann reported on a meeting with Senator Klobuchar’s staff
c. Kip reported on his communication with Pastor Gwin Pratt of St Luke Presbyterian Church in Minnetonka. He will be speaking at the end of the month to their policy committee which plans to apply for a national grant ($2500) that would be used to hold a single-payer workshop.
d. September Mad As Hell event reviewed – turnout at the capitol was smaller than desired (likely due to the event time on a weekday), but event was successful; press coverage was excellent
i. We agreed to give the large signed poster requesting protection of the Kucinich amendment to Representative Ellison. Other legislators will receive a photo of the poster. The entire MN delegation will receive a letter from PNHP-MN requesting their assistance in protecting the amendment. Letter is attached.

2. Upcoming talks/events
a. Oct 8 – SD 53 healthcare forum (Rep. Paul Gardner’s district). Ellen Lafans has requested a doc attend to help her direct Q&A. Sarah volunteered.
b. Oct 10 – Elizabeth is presenting the case for single-payer to the Bush medical fellows at the Mpls Golf Club.
c. Oct 13 – David is the MD speaker at an event about the MN Health Plan in Mora from 5:30 to 7:30.
d. Oct 13 – Kip is speaking to a group of alternative healthcare providers at 7:30 pm at the Eagan Community Center at 1501Central Parkway, Eagan.
e. Oct 14 – Hazardous to your Health series at 7pm. Topic: racial disparities. Speakers will be Dr. Pat Rock (Indian Health Board) and state Representative Hayden. Flyer is attached.
f. Oct 14 – SD 53 is holding a house party for the MN Health Plan – Ellen Lafans has requested a doc attend from PNHP. David has volunteered.
g. Oct 15 – Glen Peterson is speaking at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Mankato at 6:30 and would like to have an MD co-present with him. Lynn Kelley is a maybe, and Sarah volunteered to attend.
h. Oct 24 – PNHP annual meeting in Boston – Susan Hasti and Gillian Schivone are attending the leadership training in addition to the annual mtg. Ann, Elizabeth, and Sarah will be attending the annual meeting. We will hold a Minnesota speakers’ training after the first of the year using Susan and Gillian’s expertise.
i. Oct 28 – Unity-building get-together 3:30-5:30 as f/u from the July workshop for MN groups involved in healthcare reform. David will represent PNHP-MN.
j. Oct 28 – Kip will be speaking at 9:30 am at the Depot in downtown Mpls to the Association of United Methodist Pension Officers.
k. Oct 31 - Mobilize for the Minnesota Health Plan Training; 10 a.m.- 3 p.m. (lunch included); Rochester Senior Center; 121 North Broadway; Rochester . This is a great opportunity to learn more about our state bill. Sign up on the MUHCC website.

3. Discussion surrounding our letter regarding the public option that was mailed in late July to the MN congressional delegation. In it we collaborated with other groups to outline minimum criteria for the PO. Unfortunately, these have not been supported strongly by our collaborators, and we discussed how to address the issue further. Kip will arrange a f/u meeting with Vic Rosenthal.

4. The following 13 state legislators have been identified by MUHCC as targets for upcoming committee hearings in the next session. Those who take responsibility for a district will call each member in the district to determine their level of interest in meeting with their legislator about the MHP. If needed, they will attend the meeting. They will also use the phone call to f/u on the MUHCC fundraising letter that was mailed last week.
a. SD 22 Senator Jim Vickerman – 0 docs
b. SD 45 Senator Ann Rest, New Hope – 3 docs (1 is Paul Pentel) – Laurel will take.
c. SD 51 Senator Don Betzold – 1 member – Laurel will take.
d. SD 57 Senator Katie Sieben, Newport – 6 members (5 are docs including Bill Spinelli, and 1 member is Eileen Weber, RN) – Jim will take.
e. HD 53A Rep. Paul Gardner, Shoreview – 1 doc (George Dawson, psychiatry) – Dave will take.
f. HD 56A Rep. Julie Bunn, Lake Elmo – 0 docs
g. HD 29B Rep. Kim Norton, Rochester – 2 docs (1 is Rick Kvam) – Dave will take.
h. HD 7A Rep. Tom Huntley, Duluth – 13 docs (several activists) – Ann will take.
i. HD 14B Rep. Larry Hosch – 1 doc – Elizabeth will take.
j. HD 39B Rep. Joe Atkins – 3 members (1 is a doc) – Elizabeth will take.
k. HD 44A Rep. Steve Simon – 8 docs (1 is Stuart Hanson) – Kip will take.
l. HD 50B Rep. Kate Knuth – 2 members (1 is a doc named John Salchert and the other is Barbara Qualley, RN) – Elizabeth will take.
m. HD 55A Rep. Leon Lillie (2 docs) – Elizabeth will take.

5. Next steering committee meeting will be held Thursday, November 12 at 7pm in the Strommen Building. Elizabeth proposed that going forward we open the SC meetings to all chapter members in order to give interested members further opportunity for involvement. All were in agreement. We will maintain the steering committee structure to use as needed for quick decisions via email, and the expectation will remain that SC members will attend the monthly meetings.

PNHP Steering Committee Meeting October 7, 2009

PNHP-MN Steering Committee Meeting

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Strommen Building St. Paul

In attendance: Kip Sullivan, David Mair, Sarah Kesler, Elizabeth Frost, Ann Settgast

1.      Member reports

a.       David reported on his August appearance on a panel on health care disparities hosted by Representative Keith Ellison

b.      David and Elizabeth reported on the meeting they had with Senator Franken’s staff; Ann reported on a  meeting with Senator Klobuchar’s staff

c.       Kip reported on his communication with Pastor Gwin Pratt of St Luke Presbyterian Church in Minnetonka.  He will be speaking at the end of the month to

 their policy committee which plans to apply for a national grant ($2500) that would be used to hold a single-payer workshop.   

d.      September Mad As Hell event reviewed – turnout at the capitol was smaller than desired (likely due to the event time on a weekday),

 but event was successful; press coverage was excellent

                                                               i.      We agreed to give the large signed poster requesting protection of the Kucinich amendment to Representative Ellison.  Other legislators will

receive a photo of the poster.  The entire MN delegation will receive a letter from PNHP-MN requesting their assistance in protecting the amendment.  Letter is attached.

2.      Upcoming talks/events

a.       Oct 8 – SD 53 healthcare forum (Rep. Paul Gardner’s district).  Ellen Lafans has requested a doc attend to help her direct Q&A.  Sarah volunteered.

b.      Oct 10 – Elizabeth is presenting the case for single-payer to the Bush medical fellows at the Mpls Golf Club.

c.       Oct 13 – David is the MD speaker at an event about the MN Health Plan in Mora from 5:30 to 7:30.

d.      Oct 13 – Kip is speaking to a group of alternative healthcare providers at 7:30 pm at the Eagan Community Center at 1501Central Parkway, Eagan.

e.       Oct 14 – Hazardous to your Health series at 7pm.  Topic: racial disparities.  Speakers will be Dr. Pat Rock (Indian Health Board) and

 state Representative Hayden.  Flyer is attached.

f.        Oct 14 – SD 53 is holding a house party for the MN Health Plan – Ellen Lafans has requested a doc attend from PNHP.  David has volunteered.

g.       Oct 15 – Glen Peterson is speaking at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Mankato at 6:30 and would like to have an MD co-present with him. 

Lynn Kelley is a maybe, and Sarah volunteered to attend.

h.       Oct 24 – PNHP annual meeting in Boston – Susan Hasti and Gillian Schivone are attending the leadership training in addition to the annual mtg.  

Ann, Elizabeth, and Sarah will be attending the annual meeting.  We will hold a Minnesota speakers’ training after the first of the year using Susan and Gillian’s expertise.

i.         Oct 28 – Unity-building get-together 3:30-5:30 as f/u from the July workshop for MN groups involved in healthcare reform.  David will represent PNHP-MN.

j.        Oct 28 – Kip will be speaking at 9:30 am at the Depot in downtown Mpls to the Association of United Methodist Pension Officers.

k.      Oct 31 - Mobilize for the Minnesota Health Plan Training; 10 a.m.- 3 p.m. (lunch included); Rochester Senior Center; 121 North Broadway; Rochester .

 This is a great opportunity to learn more about our state bill.  Sign up on the MUHCC website.

3.      Discussion surrounding our letter regarding the public option that was mailed in late July to the MN congressional delegation.

 In it we collaborated with other groups to outline minimum criteria for the PO.  Unfortunately, these have not been supported strongly by our collaborators, and we discussed how to address the issue further.  Kip will arrange a f/u meeting with Vic Rosenthal.

4.      The following 13 state legislators have been identified by MUHCC as targets for upcoming committee hearings in the next session.   Those who take responsibility for a district will call each member in the district to determine their level of interest in meeting with their legislator about the MHP.  If needed, they will attend the meeting.  They will also use the phone call to f/u on the MUHCC fundraising letter that was mailed last week.

a.       SD 22  Senator Jim Vickerman – 0 docs      

b.      SD 45  Senator Ann Rest, New Hope – 3 docs (1 is Paul Pentel) – Laurel will take.

c.       SD 51  Senator Don Betzold – 1 member – Laurel will take.

d.      SD 57  Senator Katie Sieben, Newport – 6 members (5 are docs including Bill Spinelli, and 1 member is Eileen Weber, RN) – Jim will take.

e.       HD 53A Rep. Paul Gardner, Shoreview – 1 doc (George Dawson, psychiatry) – Dave will take.

f.        HD 56A Rep. Julie Bunn, Lake Elmo – 0 docs

g.       HD 29B Rep. Kim Norton, Rochester – 2 docs (1 is Rick Kvam) – Dave will take.

h.       HD 7A  Rep. Tom Huntley, Duluth – 13 docs (several activists) – Ann will take.

i.         HD 14B Rep. Larry Hosch – 1 doc – Elizabeth will take.

j.        HD 39B Rep. Joe Atkins – 3 members (1 is a doc) – Elizabeth will take.

k.      HD 44A Rep. Steve Simon – 8 docs (1 is Stuart Hanson) – Kip will take.

l.         HD 50B Rep. Kate Knuth – 2 members (1 is a doc named John Salchert and the other is Barbara Qualley, RN) – Elizabeth will take.

m.     HD 55A Rep. Leon Lillie (2 docs) – Elizabeth will take.

5.      Next steering committee meeting will be held Thursday, November 12 at 7pm in the Strommen Building.  Elizabeth proposed

 that going forward we open the SC meetings to all chapter members in order to give interested members further opportunity for

involvement.  All were in agreement.  We will maintain the steering committee structure to use as needed for quick decisions via email, and

the expectation will remain that SC members will attend the monthly meetings.  

Mad as Hell Doctors are Coming to Town

Mad as Hell Doctors TourWednesday, September 16.
Visit http://www.madashelldoctors.com/ for more information.

11 am – 1pm Mankato. St. John's Episcopal Church 302 Warren St, Mankato, MN.

3 pm – 5pm Rally and Town Hall St. Paul Capitol Rotunda

7pm - Dr. Paul Hochfield, one of the 'Mad as Hell Docs' will present at Hazardous to Your Health Series. Jeanne d'Arc Auditorium, Whitby Hall. St. Catherine University. 2004 Randolf Ave, St. Paul, MN

Next Chapter Meeting

Our next whole chapter meeting will be held
Sunday August 30, 4-6 pm
Location TBD
Please mark your calendars.

Want e-mail updates? Please e-mail us at pnhpminnesota@gmail.com

Hazardous to Your Health! Rural Access to Care

The third in a 7 part series.

Problems with Rural Access to Care

August 26, 7pm

Jeanne dÁrc Auditorium, Whitby Hall
St. Catherine Univeristy

click here for more information

JUNE EVENTS

We are very happy to announce that the president of National PNHP, Dr. Oliver Fein, will be coming to the Twin Cities in June. He will be speaking at several grand rounds as well as our Gala Fundraiser. Below is our calendar of events. Hope to see you there!

Regions Hospital Internal Medicine/Emergency Medicine conference.
"National Health Insurance for the U.S.: Has Its Time Come?"
June 18 at 10 am in the 3rd floor auditorium.

University of Minnesota Internal Medicine Grand Rounds.
"National Health Insurance for the U.S.: Has Its Time Come?"
June 18 at noon in the Phillip-Wangensteen Building Rm 2-470

Minnesota Universal Health Care Coalition and
Physicians for a National Health Plan -- Fundraiser GALA!
"The White House Health Care Summit and Its Aftermath"
June 18. University Club. 6:30 PM.
Please purchase tickets at http://www.muhcc.org/
Tickets $50.

HCMC Internal Medicine Grand Rounds.
"National Health Insurance for the U.S.: Has Its Time Come?"
June 19 at noon - Red Lower Level Conference Room (RL 110), HCMC

March 1 Meeting Minutes Abbreviated

PNHP-Minnesota Chapter Meeting
March 1, 2009
Strommen Building, St. Paul, Minnesota

1. In attendance: Morrie Hodges, Gillian Schivone, Erica Weiss, Kip Sullivan, Amanda Rudelt, Jon White, Jennifer Hines, Sarah Kesler, Lynn Kelley, Dave Mair, Stuart Hanson, Jim Letts, Jack Garland, Kyle Mairose, Paul Pentel, Barbara Qualley, Ann Settgast, Elizabeth Frost

2. MN Medicine AD – will be published March 8
a. 204 current signers on our chapter resolution in support of HR 676
b. Goal of 500 by year’s end – takes 2 minutes @ www.pnhpminnsota.org – please commit to signing up ONE other person to DOUBLE the size of the list immediately!

3. State legislative update for the MN Health Act (SF 118/HF 135)
a. Successfully passed in 2 senate committee hearings earlier this year (Health and Commerce Committees) – Elizabeth and Ann reported
b. Informational hearing in the house (Health Committee) on 2/25/09 – Morrie and Lynn provided feedback about the event; bill was tabled for the next session (no vote taken).
c. PNHP members met with 13 targeted legislators through this process – THANK YOU – these efforts were fruitful and significant.

d. What is next?
i. Personal meetings with your state senator and representative are critically valuable in this process – MD opinions are highly valued – opinions of constituent MDs, even more so. Our goal for the next session should be to speak with all state legislators personally – please begin NOW by arranging a meeting with your legislator. Whether your senator and rep are already supportive or not, the meetings must be held. If already supportive, help provide your legislator with useful information he/she can use to make the case for the MHA when challenged.

ii. Goals of personal meetings with your legislators:
1. Share rationale of SP from a physician perspective
2. Educate re: MD support for SP – cite the Annals 4/08 survey and the MN Medicine 2/07 survey
3. Address questions/concerns of the legislator with your follow-up using evidence (www.pnhp.org)
4. Feel free to contact us before your meetings for background we may have on your particular legislator (eg. info from previous meetings) or for help in answering their questions.


4. Federal legislative update (HR 676) –
a. Eizabeth will draft a letter from our chapter to President Obama – we will send copies to MN’s 10 legislators in the US Congress.
b. Rep. Betty McCollum – Jon White agreed to write her to request a meeting. Jim Letts will write again. Gillian is also a constituent and would like to attend. Mark Thomas, PNHP member, will call. Once a meeting is set, we can recruit other PNHP members to accompany. i. Our goals with her:
1. Get a meeting! Ideal timing: Easter Recess April 6-17
2. Request she sign-on to HR 676
3. Request that SP advocates be present to testify at all upcoming hearings on national healthcare reform legislation
4. Sarah Kesler suggested writing an open letter if we do not receive a favorable response soon. This is a good idea. c. Rep. Tim Walz – has been receptive to our efforts, but has not co-signed HR 676. Lynn Kelley (along with Glen Peterson and Rick Kvam) will continue to work with him. d. Rep. Keith Ellison – co-signer on HR 676. We need to continue to thank him for his support. We will be meeting with him again in April. e. Rep. Jim Oberstar – has verbally pledged to co-sign in this session during our December meeting. We are still waiting his actual signature and are in active communication with his staffers in MN and DC.

5. Dr. Oliver Fein (PNHP President) visit to MN – we are aiming for June 18-20 a. Potential events
i. Grand Rounds at U of M – Paul Pentel has already preliminarily secured this venue for
Thursday, June 18 at noon
ii. Grand Rounds at ANW – Morrie Hodges will investigate this
possibility for Friday the 19th
iii. Sarah Kesler will arrange an HCMC event if ANW does not
come through
iv. We will also aim for an AMSA event with medical students during this visit – Gillian,
Kyle, and Erica can help with this. PNHP will provide food for any student event.
v. Next chapter-wide meeting/event will be scheduled in conjunction with the visit
vi. Media coverage will be very important

6. Miscellaneous –
a. Amanda Rudelt asked if our chapter is on Facebook yet. We are not. Sarah Kesler agreed to take on this project. Ann has sent her the logo.
b. Other medical professionals: Stuart Hanson inquired about other groups (eg. nurses, therapists, etc).
i. Brief discussion ensued re: nurse organizing around SP. Barbara Qualley provided some
feedback. The MN Nurse’s Association formally endorses the MHA, but has not made it
their central issue, unlike the CA Nurse’s Association.
c. Press releases – these often come from the national office and are very good. We need to make use of them. We revisited our press/media contact list. Currently Gillian, Jim, Elizabeth, Kip, Dave, Ann, Glen, and Susan H are assigned to contacts. We agreed from now going forward, that press releases will be promptly distributed by us to our respective contacts. Kip agreed to take on a couple unassigned contacts (the Rochester Post Bulletin and the St. Cloud Times. Elizabeth will send a reminder email when this happens.

7. Upcoming events
a. SD 38 health care forum (Eagan Community Center) 3/3/09 at 7pm – David Mair is speaking. Please attend in support.
b. Cable TV show called A Public Health Journal, hosted by Ed Ehlinger. Will feature the MHA 3/4/09 at 11:30am. Kip Sullivan may be available to be the guest.
c. SD 41 DFL convention (Edina) with Kip Sullivan 3/7/09 at 10am – Lynn Kelley volunteered to be the MD speaker.
d. Kip is speaking on 3/12 to SD 60 in Columbia Heights – would like an MD speaker. Ann is available if no one else is free.
e. MN Academy of Family Physicians Spring Refresher booth – April 16-17. Thank you to Laurel Gamm for arranging! This event will be attended by several hundred providers. We hope to garner many signatures.
i. Lynn Kelley, Susan Hasti, Jim Letts, Laurel Gamm, and Elizabeth will staff the booth
ii. If you are a family medicine doc reading these minutes and can help with staffing the
booth, please contact Elizabeth!! (pnhpminnesota@gmail.com) We want to have two
physicians present at all times.

8. Ideas for further speaking venues a. United Family Medicine Program – Jim Letts will follow up b. DFL speaker series in April/May – Elizabeth has this in the works w/ Anne Queenan