Op Ed Editorial

from Brooklyn Community Newspapers | July 9, 2020

Real Estate

HARLEM COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS OP-ED: Past Due Time for American Healthcare System to Protect Black Americans

By Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., President and CEO, National Newspaper Publishers Association

Today, Americans are makeup of the state. That is facing unprecedented 70 more Americans who will times. We are in the die just because of the color of midst of a global pandemic, their skin. our country has fallen into an Unfortunately, these economic recession, and hunhealthcare disparities are nothdreds of thousands are protesting new. Black Americans ing police brutality and racial have long suffered from a seinjustice. But there is another vere lack of access to quality, epidemic in this country that affordable care, which predismust be addressed, and it must poses them to increased rates be addressed now. of underlying conditions and

CNN’s Don Lemon said it illnesses. Due to the lack of best – “there are two deadaccess, Black Americans are ly viruses killing Americans: often forced to travel very far COVID-19 and racism.” for care. This usually means, if

Because of the systematic they have insurance, they must racism that is rooted in our nago to out-of-network facilities tion, racial disparities in Amerand often find themselves hit ican healthcare have caused with exorbitant surprise mediillness, injury, and death in mical bills. nority communities across the Surprise medical bills are country. Black Americans sufunanticipated costs related to fer the most at the hands of the out-of-network or emergency American healthcare system. care a patient received. These Now, we are seeing COVID-19 bills can range from a $50 shine a much-needed light on prescription drug to $30,000 the harsh reality that has been in emergency transport. Not plaguing an entire race for censurprisingly, Black Americans turies. suffer from a higher rate of

In my own home state surprise medical bills, at highof North Carolina, Black er costs compared to White Americans make up 30 perAmericans. cent of COVID-19 cases and Congress holds the pen 34 percent of the COVID-19 when it comes to reforming deaths, even though they only surprise medical billing in this make up 22 percent of the popcountry, but they are falling ulation. Really think about that far short of what needs to be math. How does it make sense? done. There are multiple bills

That means, 162 Black in the House and the Senate North Carolinians will die due that claim to rectify this injusto COVID-19, which is 70 tice, but all of them still leave more than would be expectthe cost to patients or provided based on the demographic ers without holding insurance

companies accountable.

While Congress is trying to figure it out, we are seeing the administration miss the mark as well. In aTwitter thread on June 22, CMS Administrator Seema Verma may have misdiagnosed the real root of the issue – insurers. Because of the blatant and intrinsic greed, these companies are starving patients of care and putting the financial burden on their shoulders.

In a recent Congressional hearing, Dr. Rhea Boyd, a practicing physician and healthcare scholar said, “ensuring that insurance is not a barrier to healthcare is really critical, particularly for African Americans…”

Insurance companies make billions of dollars every year by using sly tactics like skinny networks to lure consumers in and then slap them with a surprise medical bill when they go out-of-network. It is time to put a stop to insurance companies making billions off the backs of hardworking Americans.

It is clear that Senator Lamar Alexander and Representatives Frank Pallone and Greg Walden, three of the members committed to eradicating surprise medical billing, are in the pockets of Big Insurance. The bills they are sponsoring do not even bring insurance companies to the negotiating table, let alone hold them responsible.

We are halfway through 2020, and we still do not have proposed legislation that gets at the root of the surprise medical billing problem. We must get rid of skinny networks, improve access to care, and cover emergency services. It is time for insurance companies to pay, so we can save Black lives. Black Lives Matter.

Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. is President and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association based in Washington, DC. and he regularly comments on public policy issues that impact the quality of life of Black America. Dr. Chavis was the first person to coin the term “environmental racism.”