About the PA Health Access Network (PHAN)

PHAN is a statewide coalition of organizations working to protect high quality health insurance coverage for individuals and businesses, and expand coverage to the uninsured.

Coalition partners include the City of Philadelphia Office of Consumer Affairs, the Consumer Health Coalition of Pittsburgh, the Keystone Development Partnership, the Lutheran Advocacy Ministry in Pennsylvania (LAMPa), the Paraprofessional Health Care Institute (PHI), the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center, the Pennsylvania Health Law Project, the Philadelphia Unemployment Project (PUP)/Unemployment Information Center, Service Employees International Union (SEIU), and the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW), Local 1776.

PHAN is working with local organizations in communities across the Commonwealth to turn public anxiety about declining health care coverage into a sustained public voice for reform. PHAN works to promote change at the state and national level by mobilizing affected constituencies, including consumers, health care providers, business, labor, the faith community and the general public to press for a more accessible and affordable health care system.

The coalition participates in the Consumer Voices for Coverage initiative of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), which supports state advocacy efforts by fostering strong and robust advocacy infrastructures. The Consumer Voices for Coveragevision is to enhance the critical role that advocates play in shaping and promoting comprehensive health reform. The $15 million initiative strengthens existing advocacy networks in12 states, including Pennsylvania. Community Catalyst, a national non-profit consumer health advocacy organization headquartered in Boston, coordinates the effort nationwide.

PHAN Objectives

1. To expand access for the uninsured in Pennsylvania;

2. To make comprehensive quality, affordable health care reform a major policy issue and;

3. To reform the private insurance system so people have greater access to care

PHAN Strategies

Health care consumers need a stronger voice in the health care debate. PHAN is building a statewide health care reform coalition that will ensure a consistent presence for health care consumers in the state capital and statewide. It is organizing local health access coalitions across the state and providing information and opportunities for people who are concerned about health care to get involved.

We all have a stake in health care reform

If you are an individual worried about eroding coverage, a small business trying to pay rising premiums, or a health care provider passionate about improving wellness in your community, your voice must be heard. PHAN is organizing task forces for small businesses and practitioners to bring your unique perspective to the debate. Solving the health care crisis is the top priority for voters going into the 2008 elections, but it is not always the priority for those seeking our votes. We will work, in a non-partisan effort to ensure that policymakers of both parties address the health care problem and take action on real solutions to reduce costs and stop the decline in quality health care coverage.

Information is power

There are good health care reform ideas, and there are some bad proposals. Our goal is to ensure that policymakers and the public understand the difference and will support those reforms that ensure high quality, affordable health care. We will provide information and analysis that will educate and inform policy makers and assist advocates leading to action on effective solutions.