Peach Pulse Archive 2016
GHF IN THE COMMUNITY
GHF Presents at Connections 2016
GHF’s Cindy Zeldin and Laura Colbert presented at the Healthcare Georgia Foundation’s 2016 Connections conference. They shared GHF organizational strengths that foster and support the development of strategic partnerships and cooperation. Check out Laura’s blog post about the conference for resources and more!
GHF joins League of Women Voters for Annual Meeting
On Saturday, April 21st, GHF’s Whitney Griggs spoke to the Fulton County League of Women Voters about health care issues addressed in the 2016 legislative session. She highlighted bills focused on health care disparities and the coverage gap.
GOVERNOR DEAL SIGNS BIPARTISAN PROVIDER DIRECTORY LEGISLATION
GHF and partners attend signing of SB 302
Last week, Governor Deal signed SB 302 into law! GHF advocated throughout the Legislative Session for this bipartisan bill to improve the accuracy and usability of provider directories. SB 302 is an important step towards making provider directories the accurate and functional tool that consumers need to make the best health care decisions for themselves and their families. Georgia’s proactive move is being noted by national partners – check out the coverage!
Consumers Union – Consumers Score Victory with Georgia Provider Directory Legislation Signed into Law
Families USA – How States Are Improving Consumers’ Access to In-Network Health Care Providers
Community Catalyst – Protecting Health Care Consumers in the Peach State
For more information and resources on provider directories, check out our blog post.
NEW AT HEALTHYFUTUREGA.ORG
Infographics page
We know you care about advocating for a healthy future – it’s why you signed up for our emails! We also know you’re busy. So we’ve been working on ways you can learn, engage, and participate in the way that works best for you! One such avenue is through our infographics page. There you’ll find infographics on the issues you care about and easy buttons to share them on social media! If you’re on Pinterest, you can also follow our infographics board.
APRIL EVENTS
Inman Park Festival – GHF goes to the community
This past weekend, GHF had a table at the Inman Park Festival. Whitney and Laura were on hand to talk about the coverage gap and other GHF priorities. We collected dozens of close the gap postcards and gave out goodies to those that stopped by! Thank you to our partners at Feminist Women’s Health Center for joining us at the festival!
Post Legislative Session Webinar
If you weren’t able to attend our April 5th webinar, Changes in health Care and Policy in the 2016 Georgia Legislative Session, don’t worry, you can watch it here. The webinar reviews bills, resolutions, and budgetary items discussed during the 2016 Legislative Session that may impact Georgia’s health care system and health care consumers. Have questions that didn’t get answered? Email Laura!
PARTNER HIGHLIGHT
American Diabetes Association – Georgia Chapter
GHF is excited to partner with the Georgia chapter of the American Diabetes Association to support health advocacy work that can improve the lives of people affected by diabetes. Advocacy collaborations involve participation in the effort to pass SB 302, expansion of the American Diabetes Association’s Safe at School training program, and a Diabetes Advocacy Day at the Capitol in 2017. For information on involvement with the American Diabetes Association please contact Rebecca Drake.
The mission of the Georgia chapter of the American Diabetes Association is to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes in the state.
SAVE THE DATE: SEPTEMBER 28, 2016
Join us for the 2nd annual Consumer Health Impact Awards!
We had a blast celebrating advocacy and health advances in Georgia with you last year and we can’t wait to do it again! Voting is now open for the Linda S. Lowe Health Advocacy Award and for the Community Impact Award. Know a person or organization whose work deserves to be recognized? Nominate them today! If you’re interested in sponsoring you can learn more here. RSVP here.
GHF WELCOMES NEW BOARD MEMBERS
Deep Shah
Dr. Deep Shah, MD, MSc is a senior internal medicine resident at Emory University School of Medicine/Grady Memorial Hospital. He graduated summa cum laude from the University of Georgia, where he won a Rhodes Scholarship to pursue a master’s degree in comparative social policy at Oxford. Deep then went to Harvard for medical school. He has worked as a policy fellow for Senator Johnny Isakson and Governor Sonny Perdue. He serves on the American College of Physicians’ Medical Practice and Quality Committee and Committee and Council of Resident/Fellow Members. After residency, he plans to marry his interests in primary care, health administration, and public policy.
Melanie Porter
Melanie recently retired from John Deere, where she worked in several diverse capacities, including Director and then Vice President of the Agri Services division of the company. Melanie led HR teams in Mergers and Acquisitions, integrating new businesses into John Deere, and was then appointed to lead a newly created HR area of Change Management, where she and her team designed and developed processes and tools that enabled aligned teamwork and supported individual and team performance improvement. She then returned to HR Operations, leading a team providing HR expertise and leadership to all the corporate functional areas of the company. Melanie also served as a Master Coach at John Deere, guiding leaders in their career objectives. She was proud to serve six years as Vice Chair of the Board for Community Health Care, Inc., an organization that provides excellent, affordable in-patient medical, dental and behavioral health care to over 35,000 patients annually.
IN THE NEWS
Study says United exit will hurt some exchange enrollees
April 19 | Georgia Health News
State document hints at downside to insurance mergers in Georgia
April 13 | Georgia Health News