(Grand Rapids, Michigan, November 19, 2009) – Janet McUlsky, Senior Director of Alliance Development for Pfizer, Inc., told attendees of the 143^rd National Grange Convention being held at the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel that “love him or don’t like him, you have to agree with President Obama that this country needs health care reform. Thirty-million uninsured in the United States is unacceptable.” Ms. McUlsky conditioned her endorsement of health care reform on the basis that it needs to be the right kind of health care reform.

“The U.S. has a ‘sick care’ health care system, which focuses on disease, not on wellness,” she opined. McUlsky pointed out that 75% of health care expenditures in the United States go toward curing core diseases such as diabetes, cancer and heart disease and that, as a nation, we are not very wellness conscious. Obesity is a major problem in the United States and we are not a very exercise orientated population.

To insure that health care reform includes focus on wellness, grassroots organizations such as the Grange and Rotary need to remain active even after passage of a bill by Congress. McUlsky pointed out that, in spite of its nearly 2,000 pages, the health care reform bill now in the Senate leaves many, many decisions up to regulatory bodies and that is where the going gets tough. Advocacy organizations like the Grange know very well who their Congressmen are, but many do not have any idea who to talk to at the regulatory agencies. McUlsky urged Grange members to continue to talk to their Congressional representatives at the local level while the Washington staff targeted regulatory leaders.

While taking questions after her remarks, McUlsky related some of her own health care experiences and the importance of taking responsibility for her own health. “People have to do what they need to do to stay healthy,” she stressed.

The National Grange is the nation's oldest general farm and rural public interest organization. Originally founded in 1867, today the Grange represents nearly 200,000 grassroots Grange members affiliated with 2,700 local, county and state Grange chapters located in 40 states. Grange members provide service to agriculture and rural communities on a wide variety of issues, including economic development, education, family endeavors, and legislation designed to assure a strong and viable rural America.