Spring Break
Upcoming healthcare forum likely last in series
Issue date: 9/25/08
As the financial crisis dominates the political arena, politicians and policy makers may soon lose a forum to discuss solutions to a growing nationwide problem: the broken healthcare system.
This Friday, Hopkins President William Brody will discuss healthcare issues with Speaker of the House and Hopkins 2009 Commencement speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) in a forum airing on Maryland Public Television.
But Michael Field, an assistant to Brody who has helped coordinate the forums and write Brody's speeches on healthcare, said this is "likely to be the last" edition of the forums because of the president's approaching retirement.
"For the time being, healthcare is off everyone's radar," Field said. "We are subject to the news cycle. It's hard to get coverage when there is the very real possibility of a financial collapse weighing on people's minds."
Just more than a year ago, Brody announced at the National Press Club his plans to create a series of forums devoted to talking about what he described as "America's healthcare crisis."
The forums, entitled "Healthcare '08: Search for Solutions," were cosponsored by the National Coalition on Health Care and produced for the Retirement Living Television network. Since August the forums have begun airing on Maryland Public Television.
At the start, coordinators were optimistic that they would attract high-caliber participants to the forums. But only presidential candidates to appear on the program were former Gov. Mitt Romney (R-Mass.) and former Senator Mike Gravel (D-AK).
Field was "disappointed" with the forum's inability to attract presidential nominees.
"The candidates proved more difficult to get a hold of than we thought," he said.
Both Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-CA) failed to follow through on their commitment to the forums.
"Hillary Clinton said she would do it repeatedly, but I'm sure she never anticipated being in the political fight for her life ... She said she would do it at a point when it seemed she would sail fairly easily into the nomination. As we know, that did not happen," Field said.
This Friday, Hopkins President William Brody will discuss healthcare issues with Speaker of the House and Hopkins 2009 Commencement speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) in a forum airing on Maryland Public Television.
But Michael Field, an assistant to Brody who has helped coordinate the forums and write Brody's speeches on healthcare, said this is "likely to be the last" edition of the forums because of the president's approaching retirement.
"For the time being, healthcare is off everyone's radar," Field said. "We are subject to the news cycle. It's hard to get coverage when there is the very real possibility of a financial collapse weighing on people's minds."
Just more than a year ago, Brody announced at the National Press Club his plans to create a series of forums devoted to talking about what he described as "America's healthcare crisis."
The forums, entitled "Healthcare '08: Search for Solutions," were cosponsored by the National Coalition on Health Care and produced for the Retirement Living Television network. Since August the forums have begun airing on Maryland Public Television.
At the start, coordinators were optimistic that they would attract high-caliber participants to the forums. But only presidential candidates to appear on the program were former Gov. Mitt Romney (R-Mass.) and former Senator Mike Gravel (D-AK).
Field was "disappointed" with the forum's inability to attract presidential nominees.
"The candidates proved more difficult to get a hold of than we thought," he said.
Both Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-CA) failed to follow through on their commitment to the forums.
"Hillary Clinton said she would do it repeatedly, but I'm sure she never anticipated being in the political fight for her life ... She said she would do it at a point when it seemed she would sail fairly easily into the nomination. As we know, that did not happen," Field said.
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