West Virginia State Democratic Party

West Virginia Democratic Party Platform

Health and Welfare

The health of individuals and the welfare of society are issues that should be at the forefront of policy discussions, but the current national agenda is not focused on the quality of life for the average American. As a result, federal funding for essential programs continues to dwindle, while our population ages and becomes more sickly. Under a Republican President and Congress, this country's health has suffered, both in availability and quality of services. The status of West Virginian's health remains in crisis.

President George Bush continues to fail in developing a national plan to address the crisis of the uninsured. One in every five West Virginians between the ages of 19 and 64 has no health insurance. Moreover, 61 percent of West Virginia's uninsured are employed with 30 percent working more than 40 hours per week. The Institute for Medicine estimates 18,000 Americans die annually because they lack health coverage. Thousands of Americans face unnecessary pain and disability every year because they did not get the health care they needed.

The United States is in the midst of a nursing shortage that will intensify as baby boomers age and health needs grow. The Republican Senate has failed to provide additional federal funding through programs such as the Nurse Reinvestment Act. As a result, nursing colleges and universities across the country are struggling financially to expand enrollment to meet the rising demand for nursing care. By the year 2008, West Virginia is projected to have 3,000 fewer nurses than will be necessary to care for our citizens.

In the current climate of corporate greed and skyrocketing profits, even employees in large firms have limited access to health insurance. Among the uninsured who work for large employers, 71 percent were not offered health benefits by their employer, 15 percent of uninsured workers did not meet "eligibility" requirements, and 14 percent declined benefits, most citing the high cost as the reason for not enrolling.

Despite the Republican President's focus on making war, the Veterans Health Care System is an embarrassment to our nation. Our veterans come home to Veterans Administration waiting lists, closed hospitals and rising health care costs.

Domestic violence is the leading cause of injury to women between the ages of 15 and 44 in the United States, more than car accidents, muggings and rapes combined. On average, there is a domestic-related murder in West Virginia about every 14 days. In fact, one out of every three murders in the state is related to domestic violence. Under the Republicans, critical funding for programs through the Violence Against Women Act is threatened.

Republicans are destroying health care for the majority of Americans, and ignoring the health and well-being of the middle-class. Indeed, programs designed as the safety net for our most vulnerable citizens face cuts at the federal and state levels. Cuts and shifts in funding have a negative impact on seniors, children and families.

The Republicans continue to advocate mandatory sentencing for first-time drug offenders, so our prisons swell, along with the costs. This, despite a 1998 federal study found that substance abuse treatment cuts drug use in half, reduces criminal activity by up to 80 percent, decreases unemployment and homelessness, and reduces high-risk sexual behavior.

The Republicans have not reauthorized the TANIF program, freezing benefits at existing levels. Despite promises to the contrary, they have eliminated supplemental child care dollars, which forced states to cut child care benefits to working poor across this country.

The Republican White House and its Congressional allies continue to deny child tax credits to lower ranking military families, despite having extended it to upper income levels.

HEALTH
Democrats support a new vision of health and welfare in America and West Virginia.

West Virginia has many health challenges. Our state has a higher percentage of people aged 65 and older than every state but Florida and Pennsylvania; this fact, combined with the aging of baby boomers will significantly increase the need for health care. West Virginia hospitals already provide more than $360 million in uncompensated care annually to the uninsured and underinsured. More than 22 percent of state women are without health insurance, ranking West Virginia 48 th in the country.

Because Medicaid is inadequately funded, and reimbursement to providers is below cost, private sector and commercial insurers bear the cost of this uncompensated care. As a result, private insurance is priced out of the range of affordability for many West Virginians, thus contributing to fewer people having access to affordable insurance.

We must continue to address lifestyle issues that lead to poor health. The obesity rate among West Virginia adults increased by 83 percent from 1990 to 2002. Sixty-four percent of West Virginia adults are obese or overweight, 26 percent of low-income children between two and five years are overweight or at risk of becoming overweight.

Heart disease, cancer and diabetes continue to afflict West Virginians in frightening numbers.

Health care coverage or insurance is a right every American should enjoy. We are the only industrialized nation without a universal health care system. Quality, affordable health care is as basic a right as an education. State Democrats have looked for creative ways to improve quality health care. Senator Rockefeller, for instance, founded the Alliance for Health Reform to encourage bipartisan solutions to problems of the uninsured. His tenacious leadership nationally has made a difference to thousands of Americans. State Democrats continue their commitment to looking for creative ways to improve quality health care.

West Virginia again led the way, with a Democrat initiative to allow small businesses offer health insurance to their employees using the Public Employees Insurance Agency.

These problems caused West Virginia Democratic leaders to develop collaborative approaches to improving health care and the health care delivery system. Our limited resources and rural nature have resulted in unique programs that are frequently cited as national models.

Improvements in West Virginian's health will only come with a coordinated effort of federal, state and local action. Good nutrition and exercise must be part of our education system, through school lunches and physical education programs. Advocacy groups must work together, with the involvement of state health officials, to ensure long-lasting change. West Virginia Democrats have led the way. West Virginia Democrats have worked to:

• Control the costs and availability of prescription drugs;
• Pass a Patient's Bill of Rights;
• Provide support to our fragile rural hospitals and primary care systems;
• Expand the use of mid-level providers to improve access and more fully utilize these skilled professionals;
• Develop a primary care infrastructure;
• Expand services to the frail and elderly;
• Provide home health, home care and hospice services;
• Protect patients by ensuring health care workers are not forced into unsafe overtime;
• Protect health care workers who blow the whistle on unsafe practices; and
• Ensure children are immunized at birth against life-threatening diseases.

Nationally, 11.2 percent of children go without health insurance, and likely, health care. Democrats have led efforts to expand the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) to make West Virginia a leader in caring for our children: only 6.9 percent of children are without health insurance, and the program works aggressively to insure all eligible children . We must apply this diligence and best practice to all our health care policies.

Federal and state family and medical leave laws passed by Democrats help ensure now will have to choose between attending to the emergency medical needs of their family and keeping their jobs. Still, half of all private sector workers in the United States do not have paid sick leave. Because only one in three workers has paid sick leave to care for sick children, more than 85 million workers must choose between keeping their jobs or caring for their families. In fact, three in four low-wage workers and five in six part-time workers have no paid sick leave benefits, and most of these workers are women.

Under Democratic leadership, West Virginia's Public Employee's Insurance Agency's advertising campaign decided to focus on obesity. The creative advertising campaign focuses on motivating people to eat less and exercise more. It includes billboards that show an extra-large hamburger and a man's potbelly, with the caption "Super Size Food = A Super Size You!" The campaign has drawn the attention of national health experts.

We must focus on policies that consider the evolving technologies and sophistication of health care, by using medically accurate terminology and understanding the impact of the latest scientific advancements.

Democrats have led the way on a Patient's Bill of Rights. We pledge to extend those rights to those patients in nursing homes and other care facilities. Mental health afflictions, including substance abuse and depression, take a great toll on our society and our families, and all too often go undiagnosed or untreated. West Virginia Democrats helped passed Mental Health Parity legislation which helped many West Virginians get the treatment they deserved.

Health Care Delivery Systems
The West Virginia Democratic Party is committed to ensuring our state has an ample number of health care professionals to meet increasing demands of our aging population. Funding for medical and nursing education must be increased.

We must create a system that focuses on prevention and primary care. We must ensure a patient's only entry point into the health care system is not the emergency room.

Our health care delivery system must be intent on reducing medical errors. Our professional licensing boards must be diligent in protecting patients from health care providers who have violated their practice acts.

Multiple factors have contributed to the recent cycle of medical malpractice rate increases including state-based changes to the health care liability system, failure to adequately prevent medical errors, short staffing in many health care facilities, and the need for reforms within the insurance industry. Systemic changes to improve patient safety and reduce medical errors, such as establishment of a nationwide mandatory, state-based error reporting system; the enactment of whistle blower protections; and improved nurse staffing. Common-sense liability reforms should be implemented as well, such as more vigorous oversight and regulation of professional liability insurance industry practices and premiums.

Welfare
The well-being and success of society is predicted by how our society values its families. Underlying this core value is the acceptance and tolerance of diversity. A person and family has the right to decide how to raise their children and live their lives, and government's role must be to protect those rights.

The West Virginia Democratic Party values every citizen in our state. We believe every West Virginian has potential and every West Virginian has a place in our society. Democrats believe in:

• The right for individuals and families to have a job that allows them to be self-sufficient;
• The right to accessible, affordable health care;
• The right to a quality education;
• The right to live in a safe community; and
• The right to safe, quality daycare for children.

Social Programs
Welfare should be a second chance, not a way of life. We will create programs to support working parents that will reduce the likelihood of families entering or relapsing into welfare. We must support day care programs that assist working families, and maximize the utilization of CHIP; we understand child care and health insurance needs often force families out of the work force and back to poverty. We support family preservation programs to reduce child and spousal abuse by providing preventive services, support and intervention to families in crisis.

We support the much valued Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program which provide nutrition, education and food vouchers for expecting and nursing mothers as well as for young children.

Cuts in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) have affected families' abilities to secure jobs by reducing access to child care and transportation, as well as direct cash assistance. Democrats recognize that there are limited federal dollars, therefore general revenue dollars must fund services such as child welfare, which are not traditionally funded with TANF resources.

Children and Families
Federal and state family and medical leave laws passed by Democrats help ensure workers will not have to choose between attending to the emergency medical needs of their family and keeping their jobs.

We must provide effective intervention services for families in crisis, particularly in instances of domestic violence. This includes abuse towards women, children and men. We must continue to ensure funding for domestic violence services in each county.

We must crackdown on deadbeat parents and enforce an aggressive, effective and fair system of child support collection. We must ensure West Virginia uses national data to set standards that help families achieve self-sufficiency. We should identify and establish funding for safe and secure monitored visitation and exchange sites in each county.

Seniors
Our state is blessed with a vital, active, giving, loving and involved senior population. Residents over age 60 represent more than 20 percent of West Virginia's population. Our senior population is extremely diverse - from the very wealthy to the severely poor. As people age, their chance of becoming impoverished dramatically increases. One major illness can send a family into economic chaos. For seniors living in poverty, life is particularly hard and often depressing.

Republicans not only have slashed Medicare, but they have been unwilling to address one of the most serious problems faced by many seniors - prescription drug coverage. Our seniors pay one and a half times more than seniors in other countries for the same drugs - drugs made in America. The West Virginia Democratic Party believes no senior citizen should have to choose between buying food or the prescription drugs they need.

The West Virginia State Democratic Party recognizes that senior citizens are an integral part of our society. We are committed to helping seniors retain their independence, their dignity, and their standard of living. We support senior centers across our state and endorse their many programs which are critical to the well-being of this valued population. We also recognize the role of the Bureau of Senior Services in providing leadership and quality assurance to West Virginia's Aging Services Network.

Fixed Income
West Virginians on fixed incomes share many of the problems encountered by our seniors. We must be mindful of their plight in a society where the increase in health care and other costs outstrip the ability of those on fixed income to pay.

Women
West Virginia women rank No. 48 of 51 states, including the District of Columbia, for their overall health and well-being. This study included rankings on mortality from heart disease No. 49, lung cancer No. 48, diabetes No. 48, and breast cancer No. 33; and the number of women who are obese, 25.8 percent, and who smoke, 27.2 percent.

The economics of wages for women is a prime reason why single mothers have a difficult time moving to self-sufficiency. On average, women in West Virginia earn only 50 cents for every dollar earned by men. Seventy percent of all working women make less than $10,000 per year. Only 6 percent of all working women earn more than $25,000 per year. If we want to enable women to be self-sufficient, we must address issues of pay equity. Only 50 percent of all women ages 24-65 are in the workforce. We support the pay equity programs, including those for government employees. We support continued funding for the West Virginia Women's Commission.

Women's access to family planning services continues to decrease, while teen pregnancy rates continue to rise. West Virginia ranks No. 14 in the number of pregnancies in girls age 15-19. We must continue to take a multi-faceted approach to educating teenagers on how to prevent unwanted pregnancies. Republican-sponsored "abstinence only" programs do not work. West Virginia Democrats support contraceptive research, family planning, comprehensive family life education, and policies that support healthy child bearing.

Human Rights
The Democratic Party is a party of tolerance, a party that embraces diversity and a party that finds deep satisfaction in the powerful process of open and creative debate. As Americans, we live side-by-side with those who have differing opinions; as Democrats, we believe that our acceptance and respect for these differences is a measure of our strength.

Democrats continue to lead the fight to ensure no American suffers discrimination or deprivation of rights on the basis of race, gender, language, national origin, religion, age, disability, sexual orientation, family status or other characteristics irrelevant to ability. We are dedicated to creating an environment in West Virginia that utilizes, respects, and is tolerant of various cultural and social differences among our citizens.

We support the Equal Rights Amendment, full enforcement of all laws barring job discrimination, enforcement of equal pay for work of equal value, balanced appointments and hiring of women, minorities and the disabled to positions of major responsibility in the federal, the state and the local levels of government, including but not limited to, various governmental boards and commissions.

We support decisions of the United States Supreme Court regarding the right of every woman to make choices regarding reproduction. We encourage and support public and private programs to provide women with the widest array of safe and healthful choices.

The West Virginia Democratic Party pledges to continue fighting to eliminate barriers to employment for the disabled in both the public and private sectors and to build upon our accomplishments in providing greater access to public facilities.

Consumer Protection
Access to the civil justice system must be maintained for consumers who are victims of unsafe products or negligence. Consumers who are injured as a result of negligence must have fair and equal access to our judicial system.

Insurance costs should be closely monitored by the Insurance Commission to balance fairness for consumers with a stable insurance market. An independent consumer advocate office should be created within the Insurance Commission to act on behalf of consumers.

We endorse the monitoring of deregulation for utilities to ensure fair application of rate structures, etc. We want to ensure that all eligible rate-payers have access to special rates available to low-income households. Renewable energy production should be encouraged with programs such as net metering, which allows individuals with solar or wind installations to 'sell' energy back to the power company. State government should lead the effort in energy conservation through the purchase of super-efficient vehicles, lighting and other equipment and by being willing to increase initial investment in energy conserving devices that will pay dividends in future savings.