Event highlights need for health care reform

McALLEN - At 63, Lupe Silva is too young for Medicare, has too much income for Medicaid and is ineligible for private health insurance due to a pre-existing condition.

She was recently diagnosed with ovarian cancer and must now foot the entire medical bill.

"She had to choose between mandatory car insurance, home insurance and health insurance," said Monica Walsh, Silva's daughter.

During a news conference Wednesday to promote the National Health Care Day of Service coming up on Saturday, Walsh and state Rep. Veronica Gonzales, D-McAllen, held Silva up as an example of the 4.6 million uninsured Americans who have slipped through the cracks of the nation's healthcare system.

The nationwide event is aimed at raising awareness about healthcare needs by offering free medical services and volunteer opportunities for local community members. Organizing for America, a Democratic National Committee project that mobilizes grassroots support for President Barack Obama's legislative agenda, founded the event as part of its healthcare campaign.

Activities in the Rio Grande Valley are set to include a free health fair from 8 a.m. to noon Saturday at the University of Texas-Pan American Annex Building, 2412 S. Closner Blvd., Edinburg.

The fair will feature a blood drive sponsored by United Blood Services, a Children's Health Insurance Program registration drive sponsored by the nonprofit Children's Defense Fund, and numerous health-related screenings.

Silva, who helped organize the health fair, exemplifies the urgent need for healthcare reform, said Leslie Gower, treasurer of the Hidalgo County Texas Democratic Women.

According to the Hidalgo County Health Department, 45-50 percent of the county's adults are uninsured. The Children's Defense Fund and the U.S. Census Bureau estimate 33 percent of children in Hidalgo County are uninsured - three times the national uninsured rate for children.

Hidalgo County also has a tremendous number of patients who qualify for the County Indigent Health Care Program, which subsidizes health care for people without financial means, Rep. Gonzales said.

Walsh, who works for the San Francisco-based nonprofit Change Congress, believes the influence of big money in Washington is standing in the way of healthcare reform. Grassroots initiatives such as the National Health Care Day of Service are an important way to promote reform.

"Until people speak loudly, in abundance and often," she said, "true reform will not be possible."