On Tuesday evening, concerned Lubbock residents packed the fellowship hall at Covenant Presbyterian Church to discuss health insurance reform in Texas. They agreed that we "can't wait for Washington" to improve access to quality and affordable health care. This town hall meeting was sponsored by Cover Texas Now-- a coalition of religious and consumer organizations dedicated to going "pew to pew, door to door, and inbox to inbox" to talk to working Texans about health insurance reform. The coalition is made up of Texas Impact, Texas Legal Services, AARP, and Christian Life Commission.

 At the event, participants shared stories about their own difficulties getting health insurance or paying for hospital stays and medical bills out-of-pocket. They also proposed policy solutions to help mediate problems with the health care system and told others about local and faith-based efforts to help those without health insurance.

Participants also signed postcards calling on their representatives to work toward covering the 5.5 million people in Texas with no health insurance. Most agreed that while national health insurance reform is an ultimate goal, Texas lawmakers should act to reduce the extraordinarily high rate of uninsured in Texas. Cover Texas Now sees the Legislature's decennial "sunset review" of the Texas Department of Insurance as a rare opportunity for significant improvements in Texas' private health insurance market. Through market approaches that are common in other states, such as stronger rate regulation and reforms in pooling and risk management structures, Texas lawmakers could bring the rate of uninsured in Texas in-line with the national average.

State Representative Delwin Jones attended the forum. Beforehand he remarked, "I commend Texas Impact and the members of the coalition for sponsoring this upcoming Town Meeting in Lubbock on the crisis in the Texas private health insurance market. The meeting will be an opportunity for Lubbock area residents to discuss problems and possible change in health insurance which the Legislature may deal with in the next session."

Panelists Rose Wilson of the Lubbock Area Client Council and Bruce Bower of Texas Legal Services spoke of concerns they had heard from clients about seeking access to health care. They also discussed the distinction between public programs like CHIP or Medicaid and affordable, private health insurance. Bruce Bower said, "The hard-working people of Texas deserve health insurance at a cost they can afford that provides timely access to comprehensive, high quality health care."

The next Cover Texas Now town hall forum will be held in San Antonio at 6:30pm on Thursday, August 7^th at Beacon Hills Presbyterian Church.