March 31, 2003
Health insurance unites broad religious coalition
___WASHINGTON (RNS)--An unusually broad coalition of religious groups says expanding coverage for 41 million uninsured Americans must be a priority for people of all faiths in the 2004 elections.
___A group of Jewish, Muslim, Protestant and Catholic leaders who rarely agree on theological or political issues said March 11 that care for the poor and sick transcends religious labels.
___"In America, the wealthiest, most bountiful country in the history of the world, with the best doctors, the best hospitals, the best health care available, it's a moral shame that we have 41 million people uninsured," said Rabbi David Saperstein, director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism.
___In a conference call hosted by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation as part of Cover the Uninsured Week, the religious leaders called on churches, mosques and synagogues to force political candidates to address the issue.
___"The role of the faith community is to call the nation to be their brother's keeper, to say this is an unacceptable level of suffering," said Richard Land, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention and not a frequent ally of Saperstein's.
___The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation estimates that 75 million Americans went without health insurance for at least part of 2001, including half of Hispanics, 40 percent of blacks and one-third of the elderly. Studies show those without health insurance are more likely to die as a result of illnesses that go undetected or untreated.
___The Bush administration has proposed increased coverage by expanding community health centers, revamping Medicaid for poor people and instituting a series of tax credits to offset medical expenses.
___The religious leaders said their first task is to raise the issue, then to debate the proposals later.
___"I think we'll be able to find the difference between fundamental convictions and tactical judgments, ... and I suggest we'd find more in common than we have differences," said Michael Place, president and CEO of the Catholic Health Association.
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