By Barb Shelly, Kansas City Star Editorial Page columnist

Kathie McClure travels the highways in a mini school bus painted purple and adorned with smiley faces. What the vehicle exudes in character it lacks in certain amenities — air conditioning being one.

McClure mops sweat from her brow and shrugs. She expects things will get a lot hotter before she leaves the road.

A lawyer and mother from Atlanta, McClure is on a citizen’s crusade for health care reform. While lobbyists and politicians position themselves in Washington, the “Purple Bus Lady,” as McClure is called, stops at places such as Southwest Boulevard Family Health Care Services in Kansas City, Kan.

With a hot wind fanning the parking lot, she told her story this week to a small audience.
Her son, Chris, was diagnosed with Type I diabetes as a teenager. Two years later, her daughter, Caitlin, began experiencing small seizures after getting struck in the head while goaltending in a soccer game. A pediatrician detected an abnormal brain wave, but it took three months before Caitlin could be seen by a neurologist and diagnosed with epilepsy.

As her children neared their college graduations, McClure realized they would be unable to buy health care at a reasonable rate when they became independent.

“As young people beginning their careers, they were going to be saddled with costs that were unaffordable for them,” McClure said.

She began hearing stories of other people caught in the “health care buzzsaw.” She learned of families who went bankrupt, of sick people who became sicker, for lack of adequate medical insurance.

With the health care debate heating up in Washington, McClure took a hiatus from practicing law, bought an old school bus on eBay, established a Web site (www.votehealthcare.org) and hit the road.

“Everywhere I go I meet people who tell me the most compelling stories about how health care is failing them,” she said.

McClure drove to Washington last week and walked the halls of Capitol Hill. She didn’t like the vibes she sensed among elected officials.

“I think they’ve lost their courage to deal with the serious problem that is affecting the American people,” she said. “There seems to be a lack of leadership about how we are going to solve this health care problem.”

McClure’s prescription is simple: “My standard is: Will my children, who are chronically ill, be able to afford a reasonable plan with the benefits they need?”

It’s the sort of question we all should ask of our elected leaders.

If I get cancer and have to leave my work, could I get good medical care without facing bankruptcy?

If I lose my job, can I still pay for treatments for my diabetic child?
If I’m diagnosed with a chronic kidney disease, will my insurance provider pay for the expensive treatments?

The answer to those questions too often is “no.” Congress will need a great deal of resolve to change the response to “yes.”
McClure endorses President Barack Obama’s proposal to create a public health care option to compete with private insurance companies. “It appears to be the only plan that would have a significant effect on cutting costs,” she said.

At this point, she’s right. Maybe someone will come up with a better idea. But the current system, with its skyrocketing costs and subpar results, is unacceptable. Tinkering around the edges won’t work.
And so, this time, let’s not yield the argument to those who defend the status quo because it enriches a few at the expense of many.

Your representatives in Washington, McClure point out, “will be listening to all the lobbyists who live right next door to them.”
Make sure they hear you, too. Take a cue from the Purple Bus Lady and tell your story.

Editorial board member Barbara Shelly can be reached at or at 816-234-4595. She blogs at voices.kansascity.com