CNN’s Dr. Gupta will address isle health care forum
Star-Bulletin staff
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN senior medical correspondent, will be the key speaker at a health policy forum, "Turning Point or Tipping Point," from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Oct. 17 at the Hawaii Prince Hotel Waikiki, Mauna Kea Ballroom.
About 100,000 islanders have no health insurance and The Hawaii Institute for Public Affairs and The Hawaii Uninsured Project are sponsoring the forum to discuss ways to make health care more affordable in Hawaii.
"The affordability of health care coverage is of growing concern as costs continue to rise; it's a topic that affects everyone in Hawaii, from families to employers," said Laurel Johnston, executive director of the uninsured project. "We look to our speakers to shed new light on how we in Hawaii can work together to make health care coverage more accessible and affordable."
Gupta, a neurosurgeon, is responsible for much of CNN's medical coverage. He is on the faculty of the neurosurgery department at the Emory School of Medicine and is chief of neurosurgery at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta.
Other national speakers:
» Mark Pauly of the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, who was the first to show how health insurance may affect patients' use of medical services. He is professor of Health Care Systems, Business and Public Policy, Insurance and Risk Management and Economics.
» Kenneth Thorpe, professor and chairman of the Department of Health Policy & Management in the Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University. He has analyzed costs and benefits of covering the uninsured and the impact of obesity and other conditions on health care costs.
» Richard Curtis, president of the Institute of Health Policy Solutions, an independent nonprofit organization in Washington, D.C.
» Elaine Korry of San Francisco, a National Public Radio reporter focusing on business coverage.
Addressing worksite wellness programs will be Dinny Trinidad, Hawaii Prince Resorts; Sheri Braunthal, Outrigger Hotels & Resorts, and Cliff Hayashi, Times Super Market.
The registration deadline is Oct. 7 for the forum designed for employers, human resource managers and community and government leaders. The cost is $95 per person, including lunch.
For more information or to register, call Carol Taniguchi, 585-7931, extension 101, or see www.healthcoveragehawaii.org to download a registration form.
