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NEWS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, June 10, 1998
CONTACT: George Harrison
410.838.9340/410.838.3670

Rehrmann Calls For Changes In Health Care Delivery

Eileen M. Rehrmann, Democratic Candidate for Governor, today unveiled the Rehrmann Health Plan for Maryland to ensure that residents who are members of Health Maintenance Organizations receive basic standards of quality health care.

"The strong growth in managed care organizations in the last few years has caused deep concerns and severe problems for many Marylanders who have been faced with dramatic changes in the way they relate to their health care providers," Rehrmann said. "It is important for everyone to know that certain rights are protected in Maryland, and these rights help to ensure quality health care."

Rehrmann's plan includes four important principles, including an HMO Patient's bill of Rights, strong standards of accountability for HMO directors, reforms of the health care regulatory system, and a consumer assistance program to help patients navigate managed care systems.

Rehrmann made her announcement at the home of an HMO patient who had to fight with the HMO's management to receive the quality of care recommended by her physician. The physician treating Mrs. Joan Rohrbaugh, a resident of southwest Baltimore, for a brain tumor had ordered an extra day in the hospital for tests. The HMO initially denied the physician's recommendation and Mrs. Rohrbaugh had to intervene on her own behalf.

"Mrs. Rohrbaugh's experience is something that happens all too often to many of the Marylanders who are members of HMOs," Rehrmann said. "In my travels around the state, I heard many such stories. Many citizens worry that their health options are being reduced and that medical care decisions are being driven by concerns about holding down costs at the expense of basic health care."

The Rehrmann HMO Patient's Bill of rights contains a set of principles that addresses dignity and respect, access to health care, privacy and confidentiality, communications and grievances, financial information and disclosure.

"If this Bill of Rights had been in place when Mrs. Rohrbaugh underwent her medical treatment, she may not have suffered such a traumatic experience with her HMO," Rehrmann said.

The Bill of Rights also would give a patient the right to emergency services, guaranteed access to an appropriate medical specialist, a right to express grievances to a board of appeals and a right to receive their doctor's recommendations and referrals.

In addition to the Patient's Bill of Rights, the Rehrmann Plan also calls for:

--Standards of Accountability which guarantee standards of care for HMO patients from qualified, responsible care givers, including the requirement that HMO directors should be subjected to the authority of the Board of Physician Quality Assurance, the same as physicians.

--Regulatory and Systems Reform, which would integrate, streamline and consolidate certain health care regulatory responsibilities and duties in order to improve efficiency, access and quality in Maryland's health care delivery system.

--A Consumer Assistance Program as part of the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, to help educate newcomers to managed care and provide advocacy and information for those having problems navigating managed care systems.

Authority: James E. Haupt III, Treasurer