Growing concerns regarding the rising costs associated with healthcare and long term financial security brought people together in Bellevue recently as AARP Washington hosted the “Divided We Fail” public forum at the Red Lion Hotel. The event was part of a nationwide campaign set to address what millions of Americans believe are the two most pressing domestic issues facing our nation.

“Our country is reaching that tipping point where healthcare costs are skyrocketing, savings are plummeting and we are all feeling the squeeze at the gas pump and at the super market,” AARP volunteer state president John Barnett explained to a room of more than 200 people.

Local residents were asked to share their personal stories surrounding what many are calling “a broken health care system.”

June Hill, a Kirkland resident, has felt the effects of cancer – both on her physical health and her pocketbook. With each chemotherapy treatment, she takes a step closer to recovery and a step further into medical debt.

“My treatment plan consists of six chemotherapy treatments and I had the fifth one yesterday,” she explained and added, “It costs $13,000 a treatment and my insurance only pays $1,000. There’s an adjustment, but my part is still about $10,000 a treatment. I have insurance, sure, but it doesn’t pay as much as I’d like.”

Hill owes more than $60,000 for the chemotherapy treatments, just a portion of the total amount of medical bills that have added up over the years.

Hill is not alone in the struggle. Dave Henry of Bainbridge Island worked for Boeing until 1980, when he lost his job along with his health insurance. For 20 years, Henry lived without healthcare coverage because he was unable to afford the options available to him.

This past year, a lump in his abdomen forced him to visit his local emergency room. The lump turned out to be an abscess that was taken care of through a simple surgery, but cost him close to $10,000 in medical bills. Henry was willing to share his story in hopes that his voice would add to the millions of others that are demanding change in the healthcare system.

“Most change that really happens, happens because of crisis. There are millions out there like me that believe our nation is moving into crises, both economically and socially,” Henry said, “and with issues like medicine, our health is at the top of the list.”

According to the 2006 U.S. Census Bureau, more than 778,000 Washington residents went without health insurance in 2006, including more than 73,000 children and more than 45,000 people between the ages of 55 and 65. Doug Shadel, the AARP state director, strongly supports the new campaign’s efforts to mobilize its members and to ensure that the nation’s candidates are paying attention to what AARP’s members are concerned with.

“Healthcare costs are soaring,” Shadel said at the forum. “Traditional retirement programs are plummeting and an unprecedented number of Americans are filing personal bankruptcy. Recent data shows that up to 50 percent of those filing bankruptcy are doing so because of unpaid medical bills.”

Additionally, AARP reported that retail prescription drug prices are climbing three times faster than inflation and Medicare Part B premiums have more than doubled since 2000.

As part of the new campaign, AARP has implemented the “Divided We Fail” pledge that asks the public to commit to staying informed and to demand meaningful action from presidential candidates and members of congress. The organization also is reaching out to Congress and candidates for office, asking for their commitment to continued work on developing and implementing polices that provide all Americans with access to quality, affordable health care and lifetime financial security.

So far, more than 200 members of Congress have committed to supporting the campaign, including seven members of Washington state’s congressional delegation.

The Secretary of the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services, Robin Arnold-Williams, said it is time to act and to act boldly.

“Understanding our current system, becoming informed about options for reform and engaging in processes to develop, act and carry out these reforms will be absolutely necessary for any movement forward.”

To find out more information on AARP and the Divided We Fail campaign, visit www.dividedwefail.org.

Lindsay Larin can be reached at llarin@reporternewspapers.com or 425-453-4602.