2012 HCF Policy Agendas

On February 7, 2007, the HCF Executive Committee adopted the following public policy priorities:

  • Promoting universal health coverage for the uninsured and underinsured
  • Reducing disparities in access to quality health care/mental health care (racial, socioeconomic, and geographic)
  • Improving health care/mental health care prevention strategies

These policy priorities provide a broad vision of the policies that fit with HCF’s mission. As we approach 2012, HCF has developed tier I and tier II policy agendas. The function of these agendas is to provide more focused guidance.

These agendas will guide the dedication of HCF’s internal resources, including staff time, initiative funds, and operating budget expenses. We will continue to consider a funding relationship with all organizations whose advocacy work supports the three broad policy priorities listed above.

Tier I

Tier I activities are those which HCF will assume a leadership role and dedicate a substantial amount of its human resources.

  1. Take a leading role to support an increase of $.73 in tobacco user fees in order to generate additional revenue and promote public health, recognizing that such a sizable increase can only be accomplished through a ballot initiative and would result in a cigarette tax that still remains below the national average.
  2. Take a leading role to support the creation of a healthy, sustainable, and affordable food system for Greater Kansas City.
  3. Take a leading role to support any policy recommendations that stem from the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce’s Urban Core Neighborhood Initiative, a component of the “Big 5” agenda.

Tier II

Tier II efforts will involve collaborating with health coalitions and others whose mission and values closely reflect those of HCF.

  1. Renew the Kansas City, Missouri health levy.
  2. Begin addressing policy barriers to care for the undocumented who will not have access to any of the coverage expansions in the Affordable Care Act.
  3. Support the Healthy Communities Wyandotte process and the resulting policy recommendations.
  4. Explore solutions to increase access to oral health care in Missouri.
  5. Support others in ensuring the full and faithful implementation of provisions of the Affordable Care Act.
  6. Support ongoing efforts to fund mental illness prevention, intervention, and treatment.
  7. Prevent family and community-based violence.