How health care ruling impacts low-income folks in Washington State

With all the excitement over the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the Affordable Care Act, we asked some of Solid Ground’s experts: What does it mean for low-income folks in Washington State? We present the following report thanks to Kate Baber of the Statewide Poverty Action Network and Stephanie Earhart, lead Benefits Attorney with Solid Ground’s Family Assistance program.

Photo from the Christian Science Monitor

Yesterday, the Supreme Court upheld the 2010 federal health care reform law, known as the Affordable Care Act. This landmark decision allows the imple-mentation of the Affordable Care Act to move forward and will greatly expand low- and middle-income Americans’ quality and access to health care.

The Affordable Care Act will bring much needed relief to low-income communities across Washington. Since the onset of the Great Recession, access to health care coverage has become further out of reach for families and individuals due to economic hardship resulting from job loss, debt and foreclosure, cuts to employer-sponsored health coverage, and reductions in state-funded health care programs. As the economy recovers, health care reform will ensure Washington has a healthy workforce, children and students are better able to learn, and seniors and adults living with disabilities can survive.

Beginning in 2014, 800,000 of Washington’s 1 million uninsured people will be able to access health insurance. In addition to expanding access to coverage, the Affordable Care Act includes consumer protections that will greatly improve the quality and lower the cost of health care coverage for the 5.8 million Washingtonians who are currently insured.

Here’s how health care reform will benefit your community:

Reforms Already in Place:

• Insurance providers are barred from imposing lifetime benefit limits on people who are sick and need expensive care to get better.
• Insurance providers cannot deny coverage to children with pre-existing conditions.
• Adults with pre-existing conditions can access care through a Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan.
• Children can stay on their parents’ health care plan until the age of 26.

Reforms to Be Implemented in 2014:

• Medicaid will be expanded to cover an additional 333,000 low-income Washingtonians. In Washington State, everyone at or below 133% of the Federal Poverty Level will be covered by Medicaid beginning in 2014.
• Overall, 477,000 low- and moderate-income people will become eligible for subsidized care in the new health insurance exchange program.
• Insurance providers cannot deny coverage to adults with pre-existing conditions and can’t impose limitations on enrollment.
• Insurance providers cannot charge higher premiums to women or sicker people and have new restrictions on how much they can charge seniors.
• Prescription drugs will be more affordable for 1 million seniors and people living with disabilities in Washington as the gap in Medicare drug coverage begins to close until it is eliminated by 2020.
• Seniors will be able to access free preventative care.
• Deductibles and co-payments for preventative services will be eliminated for everyone.
• Coverage will be expanded for early retirees who are too young to qualify for Medicare, but no longer receive employer-sponsored coverage.

State subsidized health care programs that Poverty Action has worked hard to protect from budget cuts and elimination during the Great Recession will receive new federal support and will be combined with Medicaid and expanded. These programs include: health care coverage for kids (Apple Health), coverage for people living with disabilities and mental health issues (Medical Care Services), optional Medicaid programs such as dental care and medical interpreters, and coverage for low-income, working families (Basic Health).

If you’d like to know more about Medicaid Expansion in Washington State, go to: http://www.hca.wa.gov/hcr/me.

Thank you for having lunch with us

Melissa Harris-Perry presents the keynote address on poverty and racism in the U.S.

You, our fantastic table hosts and guests, raised nearly $200,000 for Solid Ground’s 12^th annual Building Community Luncheon! We’d like to thank everyone who made the event a success: our speakers, sponsors, table hosts and guests.

It was energizing to come together to celebrate our ongoing work and together move forward. We are finding ways to better integrate our services to be more effective, with the continuous goal of best serving our community.

Quinn Smart: How many of you have taken the time to seek out and listen to a child’s opinion on how to be a better philanthropist?

Quinn Smart, Penny Harvest Youth Board member, captivated us once again and illustrated how much of an impact one person – one kid – can make, when we work toward a common goal together. Her ask for support definitely inspired our guests.

Melissa Harris-Perry’s keynote was riveting. It was hard to fight the urge to take copious notes as she discussed structural racism and how important it is that we all remember that we are connected. Luckily for me (and you), there was no need to take notes, as her full keynote address is available on our YouTube Channel.

Most importantly, the Luncheon would not have been possible without the generous support of our sponsors. By underwriting the cost of the event, every dollar raised by our guests can go directly to Solid Ground.

Thank you to Microsoft, our Presenting Sponsor this year. We are honored to continue a partnership that has spanned over 15 years. Through significant investments in our programs, housing facilities and IT capacity, Microsoft has helped Solid Ground get more people out of poverty and to a place of thriving.

Thank you, also, to our Community Builder and Supporter Sponsors.

COMMUNITY BUILDER SPONSORS:

• Adobe
• The Boeing Company
• Brettler Family Foundation
• Enterprise Community Partners
• Goldman Sachs
• JP Morgan Chase & Co.
• KCTS 9
• McCallum Print Group
• Seattle Children’s
• Sprague Israel Giles Insurance

SUPPORTER SPONSORS:

• BNBuilders, Inc.
• Campion Foundation
• College Success Foundation
• Foster Pepper PLLC
• Group Health
• HomeStreet Bank
• InfoSpace, Inc.
• Kantor Taylor Nelson Evatt & Decina PC
• Moss Adams LLP
• Schroeter Goldmark & Bender
• Tonkin / Hoyne Architecture & Urban Design
• U.S. Bank
• Vulcan Inc.
• Walsh Construction Co.

Tenant Tip: Rent Smart! Tenant Rights Workshop

Rent Smart Tenant Rights Workshop, 7/24/12, 4-6pm, Beacon Hill Library

Want to know more about your rights as a renter? Wondering how to get your deposit back or request a repair? Would you like to know how the new changes in the laws impact renters?

Tenant Counselors are hosting a FREE Rent Smart workshop for the community on Tuesday July 24, 4-6pm, at the Beacon Hill Library Conference Room (2821 Beacon Ave S, Seattle, WA 98144). We’ll provide information about the landlord-tenant laws in Washington State and discuss the laws and ordinances that apply throughout the housing search process, move-in, during tenancy, move-out and eviction. Bring your questions!

Since there is no agency that enforces the Residential Landlord-Tenant Act in our state, it is largely up to tenants to understand the laws and know their rights in order to take appropriate action to effectively enforce them. We’ll talk about some tips and best practices for renters to help you assert your rights and have a successful tenancy – whether you are signing a rental agreement, requesting repairs or have questions about your privacy rights.

Especially with recent changes and additions to the laws, challenging situations can arise for tenants. For example, the laws around landlord entry and privacy rights changed in 2011, requiring landlords to provide written notice before entering a tenant’s unit (see our Tenant Tip from September 2011 for more information). If a tenant is unaware of this law or the changes, their privacy rights could be compromised. There are remedies available to tenants if a landlord is not complying with the laws, but tenants have to know those remedies are available in order to use them. Knowing the laws and what steps to take, tenants can take action to correct the problem.

If you are a tenant or service provider and would like to attend the workshop, please RSVP to our Tenant Services Workshop & Advocacy Line at 206.694.6748 or email tenantwa@solid-ground.org.

We are also available to provide workshops to organizations and groups throughout King County free of charge. Please contact us if you are interested in scheduling a workshop specifically for your agency or community group. For more information, visit our website at www.solid-ground.org/Tenant.

We look forward to seeing you on July 24^th!

The tenant information contained in this article or linked to the Solid Ground Tenant Services website is for informational purposes only. Solid Ground makes no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to its website. Solid Ground cannot act as your attorney. Solid Ground makes no representations, expressed or implied, that the information contained in or linked to its website can or will be used or interpreted in any particular way by any governmental agency or court. As legal advice must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case, and laws are constantly changing, nothing provided here should be used as a substitute for the advice of competent counsel. Solid Ground Tenant Counselors offer these tenant tips as generalized information for renters. People with specific questions should call our Tenant Services hotline at 206.694.6767 Mondays, Wednesdays & Thursdays between 10:30 am and 4:30 pm.

Senate passes Farm Bill: So now what?

(Editor’s note: This post comes from Amelia Swinton of Solid Ground’s Hunger Action Center. Amelia has been working with the Northwest Farm Bill Action Group to lobby for policy changes to help make our food systems more sustainable and better able to meet the nutritional and health needs of all Americans.)

Solid Ground’s Seattle Community Farm, one of the local projects previously funded through the Farm Bill

After weeks of debate, the United States Senate has passed a Farm Bill – or “Food & Farm Bill,” as many believe it should be called. Conceived over 80 years ago as a New Deal program to aid struggling farmers and feed hungry Americans, the Farm Bill has since evolved into our nation’s most influential piece of food and farming legislation. It sets and enforces the rules on what we eat, how much it costs, and under what conditions it is grown. The Senate’s Bill, which passed yesterday, boasts $23 billion in deficit reduction as it blueprints our food system over the next five years. Let’s take a closer look.

There is much cause to celebrate. The legislation eliminates direct payments to commodity farmers, which have been a blunt tool that overfunds industrial, monocrop agriculture. Instead, there will be greater emphasis on need-based crop insurance, including better support for organic growers. Important to Washington growers is an increase in Specialty Crop Block Grants – industry jargon meaning more money for fruits and veggies. The Senate voted to double fund Community Food Project grants, which levy federal money for community-level food system development and currently support Solid Ground’s Seattle Community Farm.

A new local fruit and vegetable program called the Hunger-Free Community Incentive Grants offers $100 million over five years to increase purchases by SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or food stamps) customers at farmers markets and other healthy food retailers, while another program would introduce a five-state Farm-to-School pilot project. Summarily, the Senate’s smörgåsbord would support rural economies, improve urban eaters’ access to healthy food, and subsidize agriculture more equitably – all amidst a climate of funding cuts.

Volunteer Peter Zimmerman at the Seattle Community Farm

But there is also reason to grieve, as the Senate Bill made significant chops to the SNAP program. It is deeply troubling to see $4.5 billion in cuts to SNAP at a time when 46 million Americans are enrolled in this program, which is one of the few federal safety nets that expands and contracts based on need. According to the Community Food Security Coalition, these cuts will reduce benefits to approximately half a million food insecure families by $90 a month. Also disappointing were the underfunding of the Outreach and Assistance to Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers program, and the failure of an amendment that would have required labeling for genetically engineered foods.

In her statement on the Bill, WA Senator Patty Murray said, “This year’s Farm Bill is a victory for Washington State, our farmers, and our economy – and I was proud to support it. It makes important investments in jobs, provides meaningful support for our fruit and vegetable growers, and reforms many programs while continuing the critical safety net for farmers. I do not believe this legislation is perfect, and I am particularly concerned about the reduction in SNAP (food stamps).” Washington Senators Murray and Maria Cantwell have been champions of economically stimulating and socially just Farm Bill reforms, and we encourage constituents to send their thanks.

What’s next? Well, the food fight marches into the House of Representatives, where it must pass before Obama can sign it into law. The House had originally planned to mark-up the Bill next week, but this process has been delayed – and that is cause for concern.

“Whether there is a 2012 Farm Bill or not will largely rest in the hands of the top House Republican leadership,” says the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition. No Farm Bill in 2012 means that funding levels from the 2008 Farm Bill will continue, which are far less progressive than those proposed by the Senate yesterday.

America is hungry for a Food & Farm Bill that addresses the real challenges facing its eaters. While the Senate’s bill makes important strides towards a fairer food system, it continues to overfund commodity agriculture at the expense of struggling Americans. As an agency committed to eliminating injustice in all its forms, we must continue to demand a better Bill. Our friends at the Northwest Farm Bill Action Group are developing a legislative agenda for the House session – whenever it happens – and we encourage you to stay tuned to their website or their Facebook page.

In the meantime, you can Dine Out to support local efforts to organize for a healthier Farm Bill! This Monday, June 25 from 4-10pm, the Northwest Farm Bill Action Group invites you to Local 360 in Belltown. A percentage of all checks will go towards this Seattle-based group’s work to educate and advocate for good food.

Memorial statue unveiled

This post is a follow up to our 4/5/12 post, Help honor a local fallen hero. A large number of Solid Ground’s Seattle Personal Transit (SPT) program drivers and passengers are U.S. veterans – and a disproportionate number of homeless adults in King County are vets. SPT ACCESS van driver Dick Clements, a U.S. Army veteran, shared these photos and details about the unveiling of a memorial statue in honor of U.S. Army Spc. Mikayla A. Bragg.

Mikayla Bragg Memorial Statue

On Wednesday June 6, 2012, a memorial statue was unveiled in a ceremony in honor of U.S. Army Specialist Mikayla A. Bragg of Longview,WA, who was killed in action on December 21, 2011 in Knowst Province in southern Afghanistan at the age of 21. The statue was placed in an outdoor courtyard next to the History Department at Mark Morris High School in Longview, where Mikayla graduated in 2008.

The statue, called the Battlefield Soldier’s Cross, depicts a pair of boots with a rifle standing on its end, barrel down, with a helmet resting on the butt end of the rifle. Cast in bronze, it has a bronze plaque at its base featuring Mikayla’s picture and service information.

During the unveiling, a replica of a Civil War blanket given to fallen union troops was presented to Mikayla’s family by the Patriot Guard Motorcycle Club. SPT driver Dick Clements reports, “We of the Black Horse Regimental Motorcycle Club inducted Mikayla into the Black Horse honorarily.”

According to veteran Kristopher North, who spearheaded the memorial statue project, “Generations of students will be able to see this memorial on a daily basis and know that not only was this one of our own but, that Freedom isn’t Free.”

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They are our family

Solid Ground’s Transportation Department operates Seattle Personal Transit (SPT), one of King County Metro ACCESS program’s subcontractors. To catch a glimpse into a day in the life of SPT ACCESS drivers, we spent an afternoon talking with drivers and passengers as we rode along on a Metro ACCESS van, then featured the story in our June 2012 Groundviews Newsletter.

SPT driver Roland Remolana raises a passenger, Mr. Moore, and his wheelchair onto a Metro ACCESS van.

They are our family

Every rider has a story, as does every driver. But when riding the regular King County Metro bus system, it’s easy to remain anonymous – to blend in with all of the other riders and slip away when you get where you’re going. No one has to know your name. Riding on a Metro ACCESS van is a different story. Your name and destination are known – necessary information for the driver.

And when you rely on a wheelchair or walker to get around, support from your driver can be critically important. Fortunately for ACCESS riders, SPT drivers are not only thoroughly trained in safety procedures for assisting passengers living with disabilities, they also show a deep respect for the people they serve. As one SPT driver, Mohammed, says of riders, “They are our family.”

So on an overcast spring afternoon, we ride along with driver Roland Remolana to get a sense of the SPT experience. As we hit the road, Roland turns on the radio to a 60s/70s station – the soundtrack backdrop for the day.

♪ ‘What becomes of the brokenhearted…’ ♪♫
Although this is his first day on a new route, Roland greets all passengers warmly, as if they have previously met. His face lights up as he says, “I love my job. I love to meet different people every day – talk to them.”

Roland assists the first passenger of the afternoon, Mr. Moore, who is in a wheelchair. Using the lift, he raises Mr. Moore – still sitting in his chair – onto the van, helps him walk to a window seat, then secures the wheelchair in place. Mr. Moore gazes out the window. He’s headed home, where he lives alone, after a long dialysis treatment.

A lifetime ago, in 1947, he moved to Seattle from NYC. When an old Motown tune comes on the radio, he taps his toe and sings along in a surprisingly clear baritone for his age. For the past three years, he says, he has spent “half my life” on dialysis – three times a week for four hours at a time.

Viewed through the windshield, Roland escorts Rogelia to the van.

In fact, the majority of the riders we meet are also on dialysis. Rogelia, a slight, cheerful woman with perfectly coiffed hair, has received treatments (and SPT ACCESS rides) for about six months. “I’m new,” she says. She describes the difference between Metro bus and ACCESS rides: “Oh, the regular bus, it takes time to wait. So this is more convenient – as long as they don’t pick up somebody!” she jokes – but often, she’s the only passenger. “It’s comfortable.” And of the drivers, she says, “They are all nice. They are very helpful. When I go to the dialysis, I have to be there on time. When we miss, they have to set up again the machine for the next  person.”

SPT driver Keith Dewey says, “You appreciate your health when you realize all the things people have to deal with and they don’t complain. A lot of them don’t want any help. They want to assert their independence, want to feel as independent as possible.”

♪ ‘And I ain’t got no worries, ‘cause I ain’t in no hurry at all…’ ♪♫
Roland quickly assesses each passenger’s need for assistance. In the International District, a young Filipina woman with a cane climbs on the van without Roland’s help. Tagalog is his first language, so they chat quietly while he stands by – not intervening – to make sure she secures her seatbelt safely before he gets back in the driver’s seat. At her home in Skyway, he walks at her side all the way up a long ramp to her door. He takes the necessary time to meet each rider’s individual needs.

When a woman boards in a wheelchair and chooses to stay seated in it, Roland patiently secures both her and the chair in place, and triple checks the six-strap system. He says, “It’s easy to put in there, like two minutes, if you know how to do it!” Then, he goes back to her home for a pillow to prop up her arm and make her more comfortable.

At the Spiritual Miracles Food Bank in Skyway, a passenger wants to board with a full grocery cart and two loose boxes balanced on top, which is against Metro’s safety rules. Roland radios in to check with his supervisor for permission first, then straps down the boxes in an empty seat. He jokes with the passenger that her very light box is heavy. She tells us, “I volunteer at the food bank,” explaining that she gets extra food to share with her co-residents in senior housing.

After she gets off, Roland says that if the boxes had been too heavy to secure, he would have had to call his route supervisor to come pick her up in a smaller van. He points to where he belted her boxes onto a seat. “See, it worked! I just strapped the box. I’d feel bad if I left, ‘cause she needs that food, you know?”

♪ ‘We’re on the road to nowhere…’ ♪♫
Roland’s route in a single afternoon winds from Capitol Hill to Rainier Valley, Beacon Hill, the International District, Skyway, South Lake Washington and Magnolia, and finally ends in Burien. He pilots the van through tight neighborhood roads, brutally torn up streets, odd-shaped cul-de-sacs.

He is the epitome of focus, whether navigating cavernous potholes or chatting with a rider while he secures her wheelchair. Roland is part technician, part case manager, and a safe driver. As dispatch calls in new pickups, he patiently handles route changes. On this day, he worked an 11-hour shift, with little time for adequate breaks. It’s a challenging job.

Roland admits, “It’s hard for the ACCESS drivers. Sometimes they’re gonna throw you in Shoreline, then go to Bothell.” He jokes, “I’m thinking, ‘Do you think I can fly?’ But he is humble: “I’m not a perfect driver, but I love everybody. Sometimes people yell at the drivers. Then I talk to them; they start laughing.” In the few short hours we spent with Roland, he certainly did leave all of his passengers smiling. ●

For more information on Seattle Personal Transit (SPT) and Metro ACCESS, visit: www.solid-ground.org/Programs/Transportation/Transit.