Join Us for an Online Seniors Health Town Hall

This past Thursday, officials from the White House and the Department of Health and Human Services held a town hall meeting to discuss how the health care law is helping women and families across the country. On Monday June 11, we will turn our attention to America’s seniors when we host a Seniors Health Town Hall.

The event will be streamed live from the White House from 10 am to 11:30 am ET.

Similar to our Women’s Health Town Hall, this event will be an interactive, open dialogue about how the health care law, the Affordable Care Act, is improving the health and quality of life for the nation’s senior citizens by strengthening the Medicare program:

• It makes preventive services available for free. This includes mammograms, colonoscopies, and an annual wellness visit where seniors can spend more time with their doctor.
• It makes prescription drugs cheaper. Seniors who hit the donut hole get a 50 percent discount on their prescription drugs and the donut hole will be closed completely in the years ahead. It cracks down on waste, fraud and abuse.

Submit questions using the Twitter hashtag #SeniorsHealth or on the HealthCareGov Facebook page.

Participants in the Town Hall include:

• Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services
• Cecilia Muñoz, Director of the White House Domestic Policy Council
• Kathy Greenlee, Assistant Secretary for Aging, HHS
• Jonathan Blum, Deputy Administrator and Director for the Center of Medicare at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, HHS
• Sandy Markwood, Chief Executive, National Association of Area Agencies on Aging
• Jim Firman, President and Chief Executive, National Council on Aging and Chair, Leadership Council of Aging Organizations
• Louise Chang, MD, Senior Medical Editor, WebMD

The Town Hall will begin at 10 a.m., Monday, June 11, 2012.