NASW member Alice Kitchen was among the 10 people honored by the White House on March 21 as Champions of Change. Kitchen joined the honorees in recognition of helping others in their community to understand the impact and opportunities from the Affordable Care Act.
Kitchen is the volunteer co-chair of the Affordable Care Public Education Committee for the Metropolitan Kansas City area. She helped coordinate more than 35 presentations on the ACA, reaching from 10 to 90 individuals in each setting, according to the White House. These ACA education sessions were targeted to seniors, women’s groups, churches, trade groups and small businesses, as well as health professionals.
Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said, “The president’s health law gives hard-working, middle-class families the security they deserve. The Affordable Care Act forces insurance companies to play by the rules, prohibiting them from dropping your coverage if you get sick, billing you into bankruptcy through annual or lifetime limits, and, soon, discriminating against anyone with a pre-existing condition.”
The Champions of Change program was created as part of President Obama’s Winning the Future initiative. A different sector is highlighted each week, and groups of champions — ranging from educators to entrepreneurs to community leaders — are recognized for the work they are doing to serve and strengthen their communities. Visit www.whitehouse.gov/champions.
From the May 2012 NASW News.