<p>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 7, 2010</p><p>For more information, contact Billie Hall, President and CEO, Sunflower Foundation, (785) 232-3000 or (866) 232-3020. </p><p>On the Front Line: Local Response to Health Reform Public Forum Features National and State Experts</p><p>TOPEKA – The Topeka-based Sunflower Foundation has announced a special public forum on health reform, “On the Front Line: Local Response to Health Reform.” The event will be held 8:15 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., Thursday, October 28, 2010, at the Oread Hotel in Lawrence. Billie Hall, President and CEO of the Sunflower Foundation, said, “We are pleased to host this important public conversation on health reform and excited to have the opportunity to bring John McDonough to Kansas. As a nationally recognized health reform expert, Dr. McDonough will help us understand the law and what it means for health care in Kansas.” A panel of state experts will open the forum with a discussion of the roles that federal government, state agencies, providers and consumers must play in health reform. The panelists include Sandy Praeger, Kansas Insurance Commissioner; Andy Allison, PhD, Executive Director, Kansas Health Policy Authority; Jen Brull, MD, President, Kansas Academy of Family Physicians and private practice physician; Sharon Homan, PhD, Vice President for Public Health, Kansas Health Institute; and Susan Sherry, Community Catalyst, Boston, MA. The forum will feature John McDonough, DPH, MPA, as the keynote speaker. Dr. McDonough has been on the forefront of health reform for several years. He served as Senator Edward Kennedy’s senior health advisor, as an elected Massachusetts state representative and as the leader of a consumer health advocacy organization. The forum is free and open to the public. However, because space is limited, advance registration is required. To learn more and register, visit the foundation’s Web site: www.sunflowerfoundation.org.</p><p>###</p><p>1200 SW Executive Drive, Suite 100 Topeka, KS 66615-3850 785 232 3000 Toll Free 866 232 3020 Fax 785 232 3168 www.sunflowerfoundation.org</p>