Our union was instrumental in fighting for healthcare reform for all Americans. Child care providers, janitors and public school employees from around the country came together under the umbrella of SEIU to demand our legislators listen to us and NOT to big insurance companies.

Now that the health insurance reform bill has passed, it can be difficult to see what this legislative change will mean for us. We know that child care providers in Maryland have a number of different types of health care. Some are insured through their spouse, others buy individual insurance and some providers struggle without insurance. So what impact will the healthcare have on us, today and in the future? 

Many provisions of the bill go into effect in 2010, including:

• Adult child may stay on their parent’s insurance until they are 26 years old.
• Beginning in June 2010, if you have been denied coverage due to a pre-existing condition, you may get coverage through a temporary reduced rate high-risk pool.
• In September 2010, small businesses with 25 or fewer employees will be able to deduct up to 35% of their health care premium costs from their taxes, making the cost of coverage cheaper.

Many parts of the health care bill will go into effect in 2014, including:

• Tax credits to help you afford insurance.
• In January 2014, small businesses with 25 or fewer employees will be able to deduct up to 50% of their health care premium costs (depending on average wages) from their taxes, making the cost of coverage cheaper.
• If you are uninsured, you will be eligible for Medicaid, an insurance program run by the federal government and your state that will provide you with comprehensive care at little to no cost.

Want more information on what healthcare reform means for your family?

Visit http://www.seiu.org/a/healthcare/the-best-resources-on-the-internet-for-the-health-care-reform-law.php

May 15, 10am to Noon – Providers Meeting at Randallstown Library, Randallstown, MD

May 20 – Governor Martin O’Malley signs the new Child Care Bill into Law

May 22, 10am to 12:30 – Providers Meeting at Francis Scott Key Elementary School, District Heights, MD

June 21 – Picnic at Rosedale Park, Baltimore, MD

June 26 – Child Care Meeting in Silver Spring, location to be announced.

> Click here to RSVP

For more information, contact Beth Myers at myersb@seiu500.org or 301-740-7139.

Governor Martin O’Malley urges “all Marylanders to recognize the critical work of early childhood educators and the value of child care for families, for children and for our state.”

> View the official proclamation

Family child care providers from across the state worked tirelessly in Annapolis this year to pass our bill.  And our hard work payed off!  Governor O’Malley will soon sign into law a bill that ensures our collective bargaining rights and our new relationship with the state can’t be taken away with the stroke of a pen.

> View photos of provider-lobbyist in Annapolis

> Download providers’ testimony in support of their child care bill

Over the past three years, providers in Prince George’s County reported the state was not meeting deadlines for POC payments — some providers had gone without pay from the state for two months.

So when the child care contract went into effect, providers used it to file a grievance. Out of that grievance, MSDE, the Department of Human Resources and the Department of Social Services in Prince
George’s County began to fix the problem:

1. They hired additional staff and reassigned others at the PG County DSS office to help clear up the backlog of POC vouchers.

2. MSDE now requires monthly reports from the PG County DSS office to monitor the system.

3. Most importantly, the state has committed to work with SEIU Local 500 to contact banks, utility companies, and other creditors about delaying action if a provider runs into trouble paying bills
because of late POC payments.

“I’ve been helping organize my fellow providers in Prince George’s County for years now, and I can say late payments were a continual problem. Some providers hadn’t been paid in months and had no idea who to turn to. Some even got behind on their mortgages because of late payments or left the profession entirely.

“The system was broken and, try as we may, we couldn’t fix it until we formed a union and built a formal relationship with the state. Now when we have a problem, we’ve got each other and the union and the structure of a contract to help us work through it. We don’t have to struggle alone.”

Madie Green
District Heights, MD