"The Healthcare Alliance was pioneering and lowered the number of uninsured in the District dramatically," Catania noted. "But now, we must do more. Access to adequate and early care is not only the right thing to do, but it will also benefit the District financially when patients are treated before the onset of significant health problems."

Catania's Universal Access to Healthcare Act requires the Mayor to submit a plan within 6 months that ensures universal access to health insurance by December 31, 2010. The legislation lays out a number of options to achieve this goal, including medical savings accounts, insurance pools, and allowing small employers to buy into the District government's health insurance.

Although the measure was temporarily retained by the Committee of the Whole, sources expect the bill will be taken up quickly by the Committee on Health, which Catania chairs, and considered by the full Council before the end of 2005. Continued support is likely given that all but one Councilmember co-sponsored the legislation (Chairman Cropp, Councilmembers Ambrose, Barry, Evans, Fenty, Graham, Gray, Mendelson, Orange, Patterson, and Schwartz).

In other action, Councilmembers Catania and Fenty (Ward 4) introduced an emergency resolution calling for the Base Realignment and Closure Commission (BRACC) to hold a hearing in the District of Columbia regarding the proposed shuttering of Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Community meetings hosted by BRACC are being held throughout the country, but the Commission does not plan on coming to the District, where more than 5,000 jobs are at risk.

For more information, please contact the Office of Councilmember David Catania by calling 202-724-7772.