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Russian Health Delegation Met With "Purple Bus Lady"
KoloTV (Reno, NV)
Posted on May 28, 2009
By Terri Russell
Kathie McClure is not so different from many parents who worry about their children’s health care. McClure has two children, one with type one diabetes, the other with epilepsy. While they were young she says they got coverage through their parent's work. But now that they're older, she says finding affordable coverage for them is a nightmare.
“My son can't even buy an insurance policy even though he has a very expensive illness, which if he takes care of himself will work great. My daughter they want to chargeher more and they don't wnat to voer what is wrong with her," says McClure
McClure is happy to show you pictures of her kids just inside the door of her purple bus. The accommodations are simple here-- a bed, a computer, a printer. But her message is more complex. How Americans can get good affordable health care. She says it starts with talking about your personal health care story, she like she does.
“And to contact their elected representatives and tell them we need to change this system its not working for people anymore,” says McClure
Kathie is here in Reno to tour the HAWC clinic-- a community health center that caters to low income patients. More than 20,000 patients with more than 60,000 visits will come here in 2009 alone.
“Our costs are half of what private sector is and we pass those discounts on to the patients,” says Mike Rodolico with the Health Access Washoe County otherwise known as the HAWC Clinic.
With Kathie is a contingency of physicians from Russia. They too are here to see how the center works. They are looking how a private non-profit clinic operates here in the United States--in Russia the health care is state run. Kathie has questions for the delegation as well. But she says tours like this give her ammunition in her quest for a better run, less expensive health care system here in the U.S.
McClure has logged more than 11-thousand miles through 21 states. This year her bus started in Atlanta traveled through the South to California, and now Nevada. If you would like more information on McClure, go to our Web channel KOLO-TV dot-com and click on Hot Topics.
http://ww2.kolotv.com/global/video/flash/flashvideoplayer.asp?playerName=miniplayer.swf&playerWidth=300&playerHeight=260&hasheadLine=false&hasBevelTheme=true&menuPosition=none&clipId=3778224&topVideoCatNo=59588&autoStart=false&mute=false
[Reprinted with Permission]
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