Harkin to headline health forum June 6

Sen. Tom Harkin will headline a national town hall meeting on health care in North Liberty June 6.

With Congress ramping up its legislative activity on health care reform, the National Forum on Health Reform will give Iowans an opportunity to weigh in on national health care reform, according to Harkin, who chairs the Senate panel that funds medical research, health care and education initiatives and is a senior member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said he wants to hear Iowans thoughts on national health care reform.

"All Iowans have a stake in health reform, so it is critical that all Iowans have a voice as this legislation begins to take shape in Congress," Harkin said. "I look forward to the opportunity to hear one-on-one from my state on this important issue."

The forum, "Prevention and Wellness: Building Blocks of Health Reform," also will be an opportunity for Iowans to hear Harkin's insights on the role of prevention and wellness in the health reform discussion, said AARP Iowa Senior State Director Bruce Koeppl.

AARP's national President Jennie Chin Hansen, a long-time advocate for health and long-term care reform, will also participate in the forum.

AARP and Divided We Fail will host the town hall-style meeting from 10:30 a.m. to noon in the Gerdin Conference Center at the North Liberty Recreation Center.

A question and answer session will follow opening remarks by Harkin, Hansen and an expert panel. A wellness walk will follow immediately after the program.

Led by AARP, the Business Roundtable, NFIB, and Service Employees International Union (SEIU), the Divided We Fail coalition (www.DividedWeFail.org) is focused on getting bipartisan action and answers from America's elected leaders on health and financial security. Divided We Fail and AARP recently hosted a similar town hall on health reform with Sen. Chuck Grassley.

The program is free and open to the public, but advance registration is requested by June 5. To register, call 1-877-926-8300 or e-mail name and contact information to ia@aarp.org.

The forum is co-sponsored by the Johnson County Livable Community Initiative and Mediacom, which will re-broadcast the forum statewide.