Health Care Reform Law/Exchanges Meetings – OKC and Tulsa

OK-SAFE, Inc. – The third meeting of the joint legislative committee to examine the effects of the federal health care reform law (Affordable Care Act, aka “ObamaCare”, etc.) on Oklahoma will be held in the Senate Chambers at the Capitol on Wednesday, October 26, 2011.

The meeting will run from 9 am to approx. 4 pm and should be available for viewing online.

The third meeting features speakers addressing the impact on Indian Health; status of lawsuits, and the ballot question opposing the mandate; federal vs. state exchanges; constitutional issues; what other states are doing.

Every Oklahoman with concerns about the implementation of health insurance exchanges (now “marketplaces”), electronic health records (EHRs) being shared everywhere, or infringements on your medical privacy needs to attend these meetings.

Committee co-chairs are Sen. Gary Stanislawski and Rep. Glen Mulready.

Contact Senator Gary Stanislawski’s or Rep. Glen Mulready’s office to be notified of meetings.

Sen. Stanislawski: 405-521-5624
Rep. Mulready: 405-557-7340

The agenda for the third meeting in OKC is below, including the names of the joint committee members. This meeting will be held in the Senate Chambers and audio/visual should be available online.

[NOTE: The fourth meeting, scheduled for Thursday, November 3rd, 2011, will be held at the Tulsa Technology Center, Riverside Campus. Amanda Teegarden, Executive Director of OK-SAFE, Inc., is one of the scheduled presenters on that date, addressing the technology, security & privacy concerns associated with the implementation of health care reform. The fifth, and last, meeting will be in OKC on Nov. 15, 2011.]

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MEETING NOTICE

JOINT COMMITTEE ON FEDERAL HEALTH CARE LAW

SUBJECT: Third Meeting

MEETING DATE: Wednesday, October 26, 2011

MEETING TIME: 9:00 A.M. – 4:00 pm (approx. end time)

LOCATION: Senate Chamber, State Capitol Building
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Agenda:

1. 9:00 – 10:00 – Affordable Care Act impact on Indian Health – Jefferson Keel, Lt. Governor, Chickasaw Nation

2. 10:00 – 10:45 – Status of PPACA lawsuits, what the ballot question did for Oklahoma – Pat Wyrick, Oklahoma Solicitor General

3. 10:45 – 11:30 – Comparison of Federal vs. State based Exchanges – David Blatt, Director of Oklahoma Policy Institute

4. 1:00 – 1:45 – Constitutional issues – Andy Spiropoulos, Professor of Law and Director of the Center for the Study of State Constitutional Law and Government, OCU School of Law

5. 1:45 – 3:00 – What other States are doing – Laura Tobler, Health Programs Director, Martha Salazar, Policy Associate, NCSL

6. Other Business

Committee Members:
Senate Appointees: House Appointees:

Senator Gary Stanislawski, Co-Chair Rep. Glen Mulready, Co-Chair

Senator Cliff Aldridge Rep. Doug Cox

Senator Bill Brown Rep. Randy Grau

Senator Sean Burrage Rep. Danny Morgan

Senator Brian Crain Rep. Jeannie McDaniel

Senator John Sparks Rep. Jason Nelson
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To call these legislators, see their contact information here. Click on Legislators link, then Senate of House members pages.

There OK legislature has created a website detailing these meetings: http://www.okhealthcare.info – check for meeting details, including presentations.

NOTE: The second meeting took place on October 5, 2011 at the Tulsa Technology Center, Riverside Campus, and featured speakers from the OK Insurance Dept., providers, and insurance underwriters. One presenter, Janet Trautwein, of NAHU, hinted at the development of the federal data hub. Video of this event is here.

Psalm 118: 8,9 – “It is better to take refuge in the LORD, than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the LORD, than to trust in princes.”

“The New Oklahoma Economy – Global, Social, Sustainable, Strategic” – Notes on Oct. 2011 Meeting

OK-SAFE, Inc.

Oklahoma’s Economic Development Council (OEDC) recently held its’ annual summit, October 3-4, 2011, in Norman, OK.

The title of this year’s summit was “The New Oklahoma Economy – Global, Social, Sustainable, Strategic” and, as the title suggests, our “betters” are planning the future for the rest of us.

In a nutshell – the new economy is:

• Global – The increased utilization of multinational corporations – and foreign direct investment – to further develop a ‘knowledge-based economy’;
• Social – Both the business and government sectors will be increasing their utilization of social media -Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter –  to market their products and to further the ideas of sustainable development.  Social media are used as data aggregation tools;
• Sustainable – Passive technology based jobs (i.e. Green Energy/Clean Energy).  Only a few will qualify for the higher-paid positions, while the rest of the population will operate in support positions, i.e. service industries;
• Strategic  – Meaning public/private partnerships, now called strategic alliances.  Generally, these are 3-way partnerships between an anchor business, academia, and the government.  The anchor will generally be a multinational corporation “for the big projects”.

The OEDC has posted all the speakers presentations on their website (here.)

One notable quote came from Erika Lucas, Global Business Services at the OK Department of Commerce when she responded to a question from the audience about trade policies and lost American jobs.

Lucas responded, “Something else to add, when you look at the portfolio of jobs that have gone to China, Mexico, you have to really ask the question of whether we want those jobs back. Okay, we’re talking advanced manufacturing. I mean, what jobs, look at the portfolios of the jobs that have left, and more than likely those were not high paid jobs, especially those that went to China.  Now I’m not saying that all of them were not, but, you know,  I do hear a lot of, you know, oh, workers investments, a lot of the jobs are coming back from China, but are they the right type of jubs we’re hunting for? In my opinion, they’re not.”

In response to the question “Is the Department of Commerce actively pursuing foreign direct investment by China?” Lucas answered, “We’re open for investments from any country…. there is a lot of interest from the Chinese to bring investment in this country…we have a trade office in China for FDI….So, the answer would be yes, we are looking at it. It is not our primary market.”

More notes on the Summit to follow shortly.