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2009 ACTION ALERT ARCHIVES:
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FYI -- from our colleagues at Raising Women's Voices for the Health Care We Need. More info at www.raisingwomensvoices.net
Mark Hannay
Director
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Tell Congress "Don't turn health reform legislation into an anti-abortion bill."
As the House prepares to vote on historic health reform legislation, anti-choice lawmakers led by Rep. Bart Stupak of Michigan are trying to derail the existing compromise on health care reform and abortion coverage (the "Capps amendment.") They want to totally exclude abortion coverage from any insurance policies (private or public) available through new "insurance exchanges" that would be created, and they're threatening to block the whole health care reform bill if they don't get their way. Catholic bishops and other anti-choice advocates are on-board with that strategy, and are urging Members of Congress to vote any against health reform if Rep. Stupak doesn't prevail.
Women's health advocates don't particularly like the "Capps" compromise that much either -- it continues to bar the use of federal funds to provide abortion coverage, a policy discriminates against low-income women needing full reproductive health care services. However, health reform holds so much promise for improving access to health care for low-income women overall that it shouldn't be turned into a political football in the perennial abortion debate.
We must send a message to the House leadership today, loud and clear: Hold firm against Rep. Stupak and his anti-choice colleagues, and leave the compromise language as it is. Please call or email your member of the House of Representatives today!!
https://ssl.capwiz.com/congressorg/directory/congdir.tt?action=myreps_form
OR
https://writerep.house.gov/writerep/welcome.shtml
OR
call your own Representative at 202-224-3121
October 17, 2009: Tuesday, Oct. 20-National Day of Action for Healthcare: OBAMA RALLY
Dear Friends and Supporters,
After nearly a century, Congress is FINALLY poised to act on comprehensive national health care reform legislation. House and Senate leaders are preparing bills that will be released in the coming days, and floor debates and votes are expected to begin perhaps as early as Mon. Oct. 26th, a mere week from now.
What happens during this coming week will set the stage for the floor debates and votes, which are expected to 3-4 weeks.
This coming Tuesday Oct. 20th is a National Day of Action for Health Care. Literally hundreds of events are happening that day all across the country where a whole variety of groups, unions, faith congregations, and other constituencies are engaging their members in activities calling on Congress to move forward on REAL health care reform.
Here's what's in the works here in NYC:
1. Tues. Oct. 20, 10 a.m. to 12 noon -- Health Care Town Meeting with Rep. Michael McMahon (D-NY 13, Staten Island and SW Brooklyn) at the Shore Hill Community Center, 9000 Shore Road (bet. 89th & 91st Stss.) in Bay Ridge. Take the R train to 86th St. in Brooklyn, and then walk south 5 blocks along 4th Ave. to 91st St., and then west 4 blocks to Shore Rd. (there's a jog south in 91st St. at 3rd Ave.) Give yourself 10-15 minutes for the walk. Here's a map:
http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&q=9000+Shore+Rd,+Brooklyn,+NY+11209&um=1&i e=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=9000+Shore+Rd,+Brooklyn,+NY+11209&gl=us&ei=zy_XSsi9M4Lj8 Qay1fjdCA&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=title&resnum=1&ved=0CA0Q8gEwAA
Action step: Mobilize your contacts and networks in the Brooklyn section of Rep. McMahon's district to get people there. Ask them to arrive between 8:30-9 a.m., and once inside to take aisle seats and/or sit up front. We don't know if people will be allowed to bring signs inside. The place only holds 150-200 people and it's very possible that the "tea party" opponents of reform will show up en masse early and take the good seats (as they did for a similar health care town meeting Rep. McMahon held on Staten Island a couple of weeks ago.) We're urging people to attemda amd express support for reform and for a strong public option linked to Medicare, and to call on Rep. McMahon to work with House leadership in moving a good reform bill forward.
2. Organizing for America (OFA) and NYC for Change are mobilizing phone banks that day to call voters locally and outside NYC and urge them to contact their Senators and Representatives about health care reform. Complete listings are on the OFA and NYC for Change websites.
3. PRESIDENT OBAMA IS COMING TO NYC NEXT TUES. EVENING! He will be in town for an event with OFA to support their work on health care reform. It is being held at the Hammerstein Ballroom at Manhattan Center, located at 311 W. 34th St. west of 8th Ave. in Manhattan.
Here's what we and our allies in Health Care for America Now (HCAN) are planning, and how you can participate:
- Press conference at 5:30 p.m. featuring leaders from local trade unions and health reform advocacy organizations
- "Rally for a Strong Public Option"at 5:45 p.m.on the east side of 8th Ave. between 33rd and 34th Sts. (enter from 33rd St.) The rally will last until about 7 p.m. The President is expected to arrive during this time frame.
Action step: We seek a really big turnout for this rally, so please spread the word. This rally will be a great opportunity for those not going into the OFA event to express support for health care reform to the public and media covering the event. In particular, the rally will emphasize support for inclusion of a strong public health insurance option within reform legislation. Bring signs, banners, and friends!
Thanks for all you do in the fight for health care for all in New York and across America,
Mark Hannay
Director
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October 7, 2009: Call your Congress Member TODAY!
Dear Friends and Supporters,
We're well on the way ...and getting ever so much closer. After almost a century of struggle, national health care reform is almost at hand. All the key Congressional committees crafting health care reform bills have finished their deliberations.
The next step? Congressional leaders -- Speaker Nancy Pelosi in the House, and Majority Leader Harry Reid in the Senate -- are working with the key committee chairs to merge the bills in each chamber during this week and next.
And then...? Full debates and floor votes in each chamber of Congress are expected to begin the week of Oct. 19 and last for 2-3 weeks. The good news is that, here in New York, both Senator Schumer and Senator Gillibrand are both strong supporters of REAL health care reform, as are almost all of the city's Congressional delegation. (For those of you on Staten Island and in southwest Brooklyn, Rep. Michael McMahon, needs to hear of your support -- he's a first-term Congressmember and is nervous about next year's mid-term elections.)
Our task right now? Thank our local Congressmembers for standing strong against the powerful special interest lobbies, and urge them to keep doing so in the coming weeks of floor debates and votes.
This week, all of us who support REAL reform -- from MoveOn to the AFL-CIO to hundreds of local community groups -- are all mobilizing literally tens of thousands (if not millions) of people across America to create a blitz phone calls to Senators and Representatives offices on Capitol Hill.
What YOU can do: "JOIN THE BLITZ!"
Call your own member of Congress at 877-264-4226 -- this toll-free number connects you directly to your Representative's office and helps track how many people are participating in this national call-in blitz.
Key messages to convey:
- First and foremost: Support the House leadership bill, H.R. 3200
- Make sure it includes the choice of a robust public health insurance option connected to Medicare
- Don't tax comprehensive insurance plans (an idea some are promoting, instead of taxing the wealthy)
- Make sure employers are required to provide coverage to their workers
- Make sure low and middle income families can afford to obtain and use insurance coverage
- Make sure immigrants are included in health care reform (important for a city like New York)
- Make sure women have access to comprehensive reproductive health services
Simple, eh? Just one quick phone call will do it -- 3 minutes max!
Thanks for all you do in the fight for health care for all in New York and in America -- keep on keepin' on!
Mark Hannay
Director
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September 28, 2009: Medicare For All March and Rally
Dear Friends and Supporters,
We want to update you about our renewed efforts here in NYC to shine the spotlight back on those various "vested special interests" who are working to stop REAL health care reform in Congress.
I. Round One: Another Success
Thanks to everyone who helped make the "BIG Insurance: We're Sick of It!" protest outside United Healthcare this past Tuesday another smashing success. This protest was one of 5 held across New York, and approximately 150 nationwide outside local offices of major insurance companies.
Kudos in particular to local leaders of MoveOn who spearheaded the event along with local members of Health Care for America Now, Citizen Action, and SEIU Local 32BJ. We filled the entire block across the street from the NYC offices at One Penn Plaza with an estimated 500-700 New Yorkers who took time out from their lunch hours to call on United Healthcare and their BIG Insurance cronies to account for all their nefarious practices, and to call on the NYC Congressional delegation to "stop listening to BIG Insurance" and instead include the choice of a public health insurance option within national health care reform legislation now being crafted in Congress.
Speakers at the event included:
- Bernadette Walker from Move On
- Mark Hannay, Director, Metro NY Health Care for All Campaign
- Tim Foley, blogger, Change.org
- Hector Figueroa, Secretary-Treasurer, SEIU Local 32BJ
- Dr. Alex Blum, member, Doctors for America and the National Physicians Alliance
- Freddy Castiblanco, owner, Terrazza 7 Train Cafe (in Jackson Heights)
Fun "guest appearances" were made by local members of "Billionaires for Wealthcare" and the "Your Ass Isn't Covered" Hospital Gown Bridage.
Toward the end of the protest, SEIU Local 32BJ lead a small delegation of people across the street to briefly meet with a local official of United Healthcare in the lobby of the building. They presented him with a list of demands that United Healthcare take steps to stop denying health care to policyholders, and stop opposing efforts in Congress to reform health care in ways favorable to consumers. This list was distributed at protests nationwide.
Finally, that same day, the Public Policy and Education Fund of New York released two new reports documenting the poor customer service records here in New York of United Healthcare and GHI-HIP (recently merged to form "Emblem Health".) The reports were based on data collected by the New York State Departments of Health and Insurance. The reports also documented how these two companies have been attempting to influence the political process over health care reform including lobby and advertising expenses, and the coercion of their employees to attend recent Congressional Town Meetings as simple members of the public expressing opposition to reform.
II. Next Up: Round Two
This coming Tues. Sept. 29, late afternoon -- "Medicare-for-All Rally and March." Gather at 4 p.m. in front of Bristol-Myers-Squibb's NYC offices at 345 Park Ave. (at 51st St.) in Manhattan; 5 p.m. march to the NYC offices of Aetna, located at 99 Park Ave. (at 40th Street.) This event is focusing in particular on the situation of a New Yorker currently facing a life-threatening medical condition who is being denied coverage by Aetna for an over-priced drug made by Bristol-Myers-Squibb (BMS). Among the demands will be that BMS lower the price of the drug and that Aetna cover it. In addition, protestors will be calling on lawmakers to support Medicare-for-All legislation in Congress (H.R. 676-Conyers, the "Weiner amendment"), and support proposals to allow states to set up their own single-payer programs (the "Kucinich amendment.") This event is being jointly organized by Private Health Insurance Must Go, Healthcare Now, and Physicians for a National Health Program. Further details are at www.phimg.org, www.healthcare-now.org, and www.pnhpnymetro.org
See you there!
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September 24, 2009: Support Senator Schumer!
The Senate Finance Committee has finally begun its formal deliberations to put forward its version of a health care reform bill. Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT), chair of the Committee, has put his own proposal on the table, and over the next week, the Committee is considering almost 600 amendments offered by both Republicans and Democrats.
Our own Senator Schumer has been leading the charge to include a public option in the bill, and we need to support and thank him for his leadership.
Sen. Baucus proposal does not include a provision to create a new Medicare-like public health insurance option that people and employers could choose instead of private insurance. The choice of a public option is essential to REAL health care reform, and is the necessary "game-changer" to make health care and health coverage truly affordable to individuals, families, unions, and employers.
At the moment, Sen. Baucus' proposal calls instead for establishing a 'faux public option": state-based, non-profit, member "health co-ops." This concept is largely untested in the real world, and likely to prove weak in the marketplace when competing against large, for-profit insurers who already dominate local insurance markets nationwide.
Another idea the Committee might consider is a so-called "trigger" proposal whereby a state-based public option could only be established once it has been proven that private insurers are not adequately able to moderate their premium and out-of-pocket costs. This idea exists under the current Medicare Part D program, and private insurers quickly learned to game the system to avoid triggering any public Medicare prescription drug plan.
The reality is that both these ideas, co-ops and triggers, are simply diversionary ideas put forth by politicians who shill for "BIG Insurance." Their number one priority is to kill off the possibility of a public option, THE #1 goal of BIG insurance, without having to vote against it.
We can't let those who've caused our current health coverage crisis in the first place prevail in health care reform.
While many of us would prefer a single-payer national health insurance program be enacted, unfortunately none of the bills now being seriously considered by Congress goes in that direction. However, a public option, IF done right, could prove the basis for such a system in the future.
The choice of a public option is VERY popular with the public, who desperately wants an alternative to BIG Insurance. Additionally, a recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine shows that nearly two-thirds of all doctors in America support their patients having the choice of a public option.
What YOU can do:
Call Senator Schumer and thank him for fighting for the public option and ask him to stand strong and keep fighting for it: 202-224-6542. Working with Sen. Rockefeller and others, Sen. Schumer is fighting for a public option, but they are going to be under tremendous pressure to cave, in order to let the bill move forward out of committee. He needs to know "we've got your back."
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September 20, 2009: Put the spotlight back on "BIG Insurance!”
In all the recent fracas over Congressional Town Meetings and emerging health care bills in Congress (all worthy of our attention), one nefarious character has slipped from the limelight: "BIG Insurance."
The insurance industry has played THE central role in creating and fostering much of our current health care crisis in the first place, and now they've been spending $1.4M a day to gut any sense of REAL health care reform legislation in Congress. They've done everything under their power to take and keep both single-payer and public option proposals off the table.
It's time for all of us, real people out in real America, to stand up, speak out, and push-back to demand that:
- A strong public option must remain in the current House bill and be included in any final Senate bill.
- A single-payer national health insurance program must be seriously considered as part of crafting health reform legislation.
It's no secret to anyone that BIG Insurance is a rapacious and profiteering industry. Its purpose is to make profits by overcharging policyholders, raising prices beyond the pale for individuals, families, employers, and unions, and denying people health care.
The results:
- 47+ million people in America without any health insurance whatsoever
- Tens of thousands more who are underinsured in case of a seious illness or injury
- Tens of thousands of unnecessary deaths every year because of uninsurance
- Tens of thousands of families torn-apart and thrown into poverty every year by medical bankruptcies
- Millions suffering from not getting the care they need when they need it
- Millions denied access to health professionals they want to see
- Health care professionals can't provide the care they believe is needed to their patients
These situations are precisely why we need REAL health care reform NOW.
Had (more than) enough??
Over the next 2 weeks here in New York City, New Yorkers will be hitting the streets to shine the spotlight back on BIG Insurance -- we urge you to join the crowds! Protest rallies and marches will be taking place on Tues. Sept. 22 and Tues. Sept. 29. We urge everyone to turn out for both, and to bring friends, family members, neighbors, and colleagues.
These events will send a message to our lawmakers that we've had enough of BIG Insurance and demand they stop listening to the insurance industry as they move health reform bills forward in Congress. We'll also declare to the insurance industry that the game is up -- no more gravy train anymore at the expense of our nation's health and the health and well-being of people in America, our families, our businesses and unions, and our health providers.
Here's what's happening when and where, and how you can get involved:
Tues. Sept. 22, 12 noon -- "BIG Insurance: Sick of It!" A protest rally outside the NYC offices of United Healthcare, the nation's second largest insurer and the owner and operator of Oxford health plans here in the greater NYC area. This protest is being jointly organized by MoveOn.org and local members of Health Care for America Now (HCAN). The demonstration will be held on 7th Avenue between 31st and 32nd Sts. in Manhattan -- United Healthcare's office is directly across the street at One Penn Plaza (the building directly above Penn Station, adjacent to Madison Square Garden.) This demonstration will be one of 5 held that day across New York State, and one of scores (if not hundreds) being held that day across the country as part of a national day of action. Tens of thousands of people will be turning out nationwide to shout a loud "NO!" to BIG Insurance, so please come join in the fun and fury. For more information, contact us or check out our website (www.metrohealthcare.org) or check the websites of MoveOn (www.moveon.org) or HCAN-NY (http://hcanny.org)
Tues. Sept. 29, late afternoon -- "Medicare-for-All Rally and March." Gather at 4 p.m. in front of Bristol-Myers-Squibb's NYC offices at 345 Park Ave. (at 51st St.) in Manhattan; 5 p.m. march to the NYC offices of Aetna, located at 99 Park Ave. (at 40th Street.) This event is focusing in particular on the situation of a New Yorker currently facing a life-threatening medical condition who is being denied coverage by Aetna for an over-priced drug made by Bristol-Myers-Squibb (BMS). Among the demands will be that BMS lower the price of the drug and that Aetna cover it. In addition, protestors will be calling on lawmakers to support Medicare-for-All legislation in Congress (H.R. 676-Conyers, the "Weiner amendment"), and support proposals to allow states to set up their own single-payer programs (the "Kucinich amendment.") This event is being jointly organized by Private Health Insurance Must Go, Healthcare Now, and Physicians for a National Health Program. Further details are at www.phimg.org, www.healthcare-now.org, and www.pnhpnymetro.org
Together, we can blunt the inordinate influence of BIG Insurance, but only if each one of us takes action. Otherwise, we'll get health care reform BIG Insurance-style -- something NONE of us wants.
Can't make one or both of these protests? Give a call to Senators Shumer and Gillibrand, and YOUR own member of Congress, and tell them "Stop listening to BIG Insurance on health care reform."
Thanks for all you do in the fight for health care for all in New York and America. As the saying goes, "See you on the barricades!"
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September 11, 2009: MARCH WITH LABOR. NYC Labor Day Parade!
Dear Friends and Supporters,
Earlier this week, President Obama made his case for health care reform to a joint session of Congress. But the fight for real health care reform was not won or lost on Wednesday night -- it comes down to what we all do now over the coming weeks.
There is no doubt that those who don't want reform will be very busy in the coming weeks. The attacks did not even wait for the end of the speech, as one Member of Congress used Town Hall-style disruption tactics in the Capitol. Will the opposition be loud? Very. Will they lie? Count on it. Will they play on fear and try to divide and conquer? Guaranteed. That is all out of our control.
How active and united all the supporters of health care justice become - that's completely within our control. August was a very busy and successful month for us here in New York with press conferences and Town Meetings, all culminating in a thousands-strong Times Square rally that sent the NYC Congressional delegation back down to DC with a clear message: get health care reform done now, get the right kind of health care reform done (which must include a strong public option), and "we've got your back."
However much each of us has done so far, we need to do more of it now. It's time to pick up the mantle again, and we begin with tomorrow's annual Labor Day Parade here in NYC.
The Committee of Interns and Residents-SEIU Healthcare is hosting a health care contingent coordinated by Health Care America Now's NYC Organizing Committee. Please join us on Sat. Sept. 12 at 12:30 p.m. on W. 48th St. between 5th & 6th Aves. as we step-off to march up 5th Ave. to show that New Yorkers join with our trade union brothers and sisters in the fight for health care justice for all working people.
See you there!
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August 21, 2009: Health care reform activists are off-and-running here in NYC big time!
Thank you to everyone who've made 2 important events that took place yesterday and today such a smashing success. The results have exceeded our wildest expectations! In short, we have now bumped up to a new level of activism to make sure health care reform legislation happens this year. Now, let's get to it!
Here's the round-up:
I. Last night (Aug. 20), people jammed into a train-the-trainers health care reform teach-in at the Committee of Interns and Residents, hosted by the NYC Organizing Committee for Health Care for America Now (HCAN.) These teach-ins are being conducted all across New York State -- see Health Care for America Now’s NY page. Presentations were given by the Public Policy and Education Fund of NY, NYers for Fiscal Fairness, and the Fiscal Policy Institute. We expected 40 people, and 70 showed up. We all got the basics of what's in the current House and Senate HELP bills, what they will mean for everyday New Yorkers and taxpayers, and how to go out and talk to the public about them to debunk the lies and reassure the uncertainties. The evening ended with a run-down of several big important activities in the works in coming weeks to help Congress and President Obama do the right thing (see more below.)
II. As part of a series of statewide press conferences around this weekend, HCAN's NYC Organizing Committee held one this afternoon (Aug. 21) at the Ryan-Chelsea Community Health Center in midtown Manhattan, featuring Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-Manhattan, Brooklyn.) Other press conferences are being held in Albany, Binghamton, Buffalo, and on Long Island -- see Health Care for America Now’s NY page. We expected a couple of dozen people be there -- instead, a crowd of 150 showed up from a wide variety of groups and trade unions, and the energy was electric! After a few weeks of "teabagger" disruptions at Congressional Town Halls, we're now fired up, ready to go, and taking back the momentum to push forward for REAL health care refrom. Here is the media release.
What's up next?
III. It's all-hands-on-deck for the Unity Walks and Times Square rally for health care reform taking place next Saturday, August 29! Given the word-on-the-street, this event seems to be catching on like wild fire in many quarters. Please make sure your group or union signs-on as a participating group if you'd like. What's expected of participating groups:
1) Turn people out for the rally in Times Square.
2) Turn people out for one of the community walks to Times Square.
3) Organize your own community walk to Times Square
4) Volunteer to help out at the rally with a variety of activities.
Further details are at NYC for Change.
IV. The Committee of Interns and Residents is hosting an HCAN contingent for NYC's Annual Labor Day Parade, taking place this year on Sat. afternoon Sept. 12. This will be a great way to reach out to involve more of our city's trade union movement in the fight for health care reform, and manifest community-labor solidarity in the fight. Watch for future details!
Thanks for all you do to fight for health care for all in New York and in America -- keep on keepin' on!
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August 7, 2009: Stand Up to the Radical Right on Health Care!
The Congressional August recess is here, and Representatives and Senators are now back home in their districts and states. The fight for universal health care has now shifted from inside-the-DC-beltway to out-in-real-America.
The top health care concern of everyday Americans (and New Yorkers) is NOT a $1 trillion estimate listed on the federal government''s 10-year budget ledger. Rather, it is the ever-worsening health care crisis and its impacts on the daily lives of us, our families, and our communities. Not only is the status quo unbearable and untenable, it's continuing to crumble around us. Change (of some sort) MUST happen, as more-of-the-same is simply not an option anymore. The only real question is what kind of change: change that benefits the profiteers, or change that benefits real people and families?
And so, a political war is now underway this month over the future of health care in America. It's both a ground war for the public, and an air war for the media. The forces of the status quo, along with their political allies (shills), are ramping up their efforts big time. They aim to either stop health care reform outright, or turn it in a vastly different direction for their own political and monetary gain. The opponents of reform are trying to scare people with outright lies and misrepresentations that they are spreading through the internet, talk radio, and cable TV echo chambers, and corporate-funded "astro-turf" groups (as opposed to real grassroots) are storming local town meetings to disrupt them and shout-down those who support reform. We can't let the special interests, political partisans, and a small minority bully and distort our democratic discourse on health care change.
In short, we will either advance or could lose the fight for health care reform this month.
President Obama put it very well in his recent email letter titled "This is the Moment", sent out to all those who are part of Organizing for America (his former election campaign operation that has now become a grassroots network to support his policy agenda):
"This is the moment our movement was built for.
"For one month, the fight for health insurance reform leaves the backrooms of Washington, D.C., and returns to communities across America. Throughout August, members of Congress are back home, where the hands they shake and the voices they hear will not belong to lobbyists, but to people like you....
"There are those who profit from the status quo, or see this debate as a political game, and they will stop at nothing to block reform. They are filling the airwaves and the internet with outrageous falsehoods to scare people into opposing change. And some people, not surprisingly, are getting pretty nervous. So we've got to get out there, fight lies with truth, and set the record straight....
"Passing comprehensive health insurance reform will not be easy. Every President since Harry Truman has talked about it, and the most powerful and experienced lobbyists in Washington stand in the way.
"But every day we don't act, Americans watch their premiums rise three times faster than wages, small businesses and families are pushed towards bankruptcy, and 14,000 people lose their coverage entirely. The cost of inaction is simply too much for the people of this nation to bear.
"So yes, fixing this crisis will not be easy. Our opponents will attack us every day for daring to try. It will require time, and hard work, and there will be days when we don't know if we have anything more to give. But there comes a moment when we all have to choose between doing what's easy, and doing what's right.
"This is one of those times. And moments like this are what this movement was built for. So, are you ready?"
We couldn't agree more with the sentiments the President has expressed in his email.
A quick sum-up of where things stand now in the legislative process:
In the House of Representatives,... All three committees of jurisdiction of have finished their consideration of the joint "tri-committee" bill ("America's Affordable Health Choices Act", H.R. 3200.) While there were some amendments made in the process (some good, some disappointing), overall the bill remains relatively in-tact from its initial version. We want to thank NYC Reps. who serve on these committees for their leadership in moving the legislative process forward: Yvette Clarke (Brooklyn), Joseph Crowley (Queens, Bronx) , Eliot Engel (Bronx, Westchester, Rockland), Charles Rangel (Manhattan, Bronx), and Anthony Weiner (Brooklyn, Queens.)
Congressional staff are now putting all the pieces back together, and once Congress returns to session after Labor Day, there will be a floor debate and vote on this bill. As the bill stand now, while not perfect (no bill ever is, once all is said and done), it goes a long way to assure that all of us will have comprehensive, quality, affordable health insurance, and millions of uninsured and under-insured Americans will gain good coverage they can rely on.
Over in the Senate,... One committee ("Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions", aka "HELP") has finished its drafting of its reform bill ("Affordable Health Choices Act"), and overall it mirrors the House bill. The second main committee of jurisdiction ("Finance") has yet to put a draft bill forward or begin its amending process. The committee's chair, Max Baucus (Montana), is trying to craft a bipartisan agreement on the provisions of a bill first, but Republican senators seem to be stalling. New York's senior senator Charles Schumer serves on this committee and is working hard to get things moving and for a politically-progressive bill to emerge. Once this committee does act (Sen.Baucus has set a deadline of Sept. 15 to start formal consideration), then its version of a bill will be merged with the HELP bill in late Sept. and the combined bill will move to the Senate floor for a formal debate and vote.
For a summary and comparison of both the Senate HELP and House bills, see: http://www.kff.org/healthreform/upload/healthreform_tri_full.pdf
NOTE: Where things stand now is the farthest Congress has ever gotten historically in consideration of any major universal health care bill, and Congress is poised for major legislation to move forward toward adoption -- that is why the forces of opposition are pushing back so hard now.
What YOU can do this month:
1. In general,.. over the next 4-6 weeks, be constantly engaged in real time, day-after-day, with your own Representative to counter-balance attacks from opponents. As a colleague in the trade union movement aptly puts it... "back 'em up", "shore 'em up", or "badger 'em up".
- For those who are support reform,... back 'em up. Thank them, and urge them to keep providing leadership.
- For those who may seem uncertain or wavering... shore 'em up. Tell them you are counting on them to "do the right thing."
- For those who oppose reform,... badger 'em up. Challenge them as to why they are stopping what we all need.
- In all cases, be sure to "tell your own story" -- nothing is more powerful to "keep it real" for lawmakers.
2. Engage local media to show support reform and combat the lies being promoted by opponents.
- Write letters to the editor of your daily and community weekly papers to "tell your own story" and call for reform
- Call-in to talk radio shows to "tell your own story" and express support for health care reform
- Contribute to internet blogs and use internet social networking sites to "tell your own story" and show support for reform
3. "DO STUFF!" -- get your own group involved in the fight. Reach down to your members and do what you do best. Then also reach out to join up with other allies. We'll keep you informed about what's going on across NYC and how you can participate -- be sure to let us know what you are doing!
4. Attend town meetings and speak up for reform. Don't chase lies, engage in shouting matches, or trade accusations, as that will just provoke opponents. Instead, speak the truth, stay on message that reform is necessary, ask your question, and again "tell your story" of why YOU need and want reform. Caution: don't get too bogged down in details as they keep changing, but stay focused on the basics.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee has prepared individual one-page fact sheets showing how reform will specifically benefit each and every Congressional district, with real numbers. They are very useful. You can see the one for your own district at: http://energycommerce.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1717:hr-320 0-americas-affordable-health-choices-act-of-2009-markup-district-by-district&catid=156:reports&I temid=55
5. Help us keep leading this fight by making a financial contribution. Simply go to our website, and click on the "donate" button in the left column. www.metrohealthcare.org Or come to our annual "Pot-Luck Picnic for Some Money in the Pot" on Thurs. eve. August 13th (see below.)
In closing, we just want to say that we are on a roll, but we gotta' keep pushing things forward toward success. As the song from the civil rights movement goes, "People get ready, a change is coming. Don't need no baggage, just get on board."
Thanks for all you do in the fight for health care for all in New York and across America.
P.S. -- Don't forget to come to our always-popular annual "Pot-Luck Picnic for Some Money-in-the-Pot". Join us on Thurs. eve. Aug. 13 for some rejuvenating fellowship and a delightful assortment of home-made food. Our annual summer evening soiree starts at 5:30 p.m. in the lovely garden at JASA's Cooper Square Residence, 200 E. 5th St. (at the Bowery) in Manhattan. All you gotta' do is bring friends, a dish to share, and your checkbook.
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July 26, 2009: Keep Health Care Reform Moving Forward in Congress
The calendar says late July, but for all of us who care about health care for all in New York and in America, it's really much more like October in a major election year, with one month to go. The outcome of the election campaign --in this case, the legislative battle in Congress-- will (literally) be vital to millions of New Yorkers and Americans and our families. We will either "elect" our candidate --politically-progressive health care reform-- or the opponents of reform will win and gain access to the levers of power to do what they want instead.
The strategy of our opponents at the moment is to slow down and stop the legislative process. They want to seize control of the debate and take reform in very different direction. If they do, we'll all end up with a real health care nightmare (as bad as the status quo may seem now.)
We can't let that happen. We've waited to long, come too far, and are much too close.
This past week has been quite a roller-coaster for our candidate. We've been up and down, day by day. By week's end, the special interests working in conjunction with political partisans (in this case, Republicans) gained momentum and have stopped consideration of reform bills from proceeding in key committees in both the House and Senate.
Our job is to now get things back on track and moving forward (see below.)
What's been going on in Congress recently:
The opposition to Congress moving forward on reform legislation is at base political. The fight is being played out on a chessboard of ideology and health care policy issues. These issues are myriad and complicated and inter-related, and for the time being, a moving target.
A draft bill (H.R. 3200) has been put out in House, and it has been amended by two committees (Education & Labor, and Ways & Means) who have finished their own vetting process. It still is under consideration and amendment in the Energy and Commerce Committee, where it is currently stalled. Here in NYC, Rep. Anthony Wiener (Brooklyn, Queens) and Rep. Eliot Engel (Bronx, Westchester, Rockland) serve on this committee. The stumbling block in this committee (and in the House in general) are centrist and conservative Democrats (many either newly-elected and/or from swing districts) who fear appearing too liberal on health care reform. Here in NYC, we are concerned about Rep. Joseph Crowley (Queens, Bronx) who chairs the "New Democrats Caucus" in the House, and Rep. Michael McMahon (Staten Island, Brooklyn) is was newly-elected in a historically-Republican district this past fall.
Over in the Senate, one committee (Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, or "HELP") has completed its own bill, but the other key committee (Finance) has yet to put out a draft bill nor begun its formal consideration process. The stumbling block here is two-fold: centrist/conservative Democrats who seek more-limited reform, and a desire by the committee's chair (Sen. Max Baucus of Montana) to craft a bill that will gain bipartisan support. New York's Senator Charles Schumer serves on this committee.
The key policy issues under dispute right now are:
- How much money (within the federal government's budget) to spend overall on new measures to assure universal, affordable insurance coverage. The current budget target is (a totally arbitrary) $1 trillion over 10 years, the lowest amount possible in the opinion of most health policy experts. This amount would lead to health care reform on the cheap. To do health reform right, Congress really needs to spend (possibly) up to $1.5 trillion over 10 years.
- How to raise the funds needed. All parties (Democrats, Republicans, and President Obama) agree that some of the money needed for reform can come from savings in our health care delivery system created by new efficiency measures, and by clamping down on waste, fraud, and abuse. For the rest of the money needed, President Obama has proposed lowering the tax rate for itemized charitable deductions taken by the wealthy, and Democratic leaders in the House have proposed raising marginal income tax rates for the top 1.4% of income earners ($280,000/yr. for individuals, and $350,000 for couples.) The Senate has not yet proposed any way to raise the funds needed for health care reform -- those ideas are to come from the Senate Finance Committee, which has yet to act. Republican and Democratic Representatives from upper-income and conservative swing districts are objecting to any changes in taxes for the wealthy.
- Whether or not to create a new "public health insurance option" that employers and individuals could choose instead of private insurance. There are several ideas being put forward in this regard: 1) a "robust", national, "Medicare-like" program (in the House bill); 2) state-based, non-profit "co-ops"; or 3) delay any new public program program altogether until it is clearly demonstrated that, under a newly-reformed system, private insurance would fail to provide affordable coverage options in the private market. The insurance industry and their allies (Chamber of Commerce, etc.) are fiercely opposed to any new public program, which they see as a threat to their hegemony over coverage through a totally private market.
- Whether or not to require employers to provide insurance coverage to their workers, or face a tax penalty that would go to fund programs for uninsured workers -- in the House bill, the penalty is 8% of payroll; the Senate HELP bill calls for a flat annual penalty of $750 per employee. Both the House bill and the Senate HELP bill would mandate employer coverage, with some exemptions for very small businesses (at the outset.) There would also be financial subsidies provided to small businesses to help them provide coverage to employees. Most employer associations, particularly for small businesses, are fiercely opposed to the idea of an employer mandate, and want to keep the current system in place where employers can voluntarily choose to offer coverage or not, and what kind of coverage to offer (comprehensive or skimpy.)
Overall opposition to reform efforts is being played out on these specific policy issues, but they are merely the pretext for opponents to stop reform altogether. Many in Congress are becoming so obsessed with the cost of reform and how to pay for it (a true "inside-the-beltway" game), that they are losing sight of the top concern of the"outsider" public: affordable coverage that everyday working people can rely on.
In short, it's time to reframe the debate away from inside-the-beltway-politics-as-usual, and turn it back to what do everyday people really want and need in health care reform, and what do we as a nation must do to make THAT happen. We cannot let the debate become limited to "insider" budget and tax concerns trumped up by the special interests as a way to stop reform. Health care reform cannot be done on the cheap, and everyone must pay their fair share based on their ability, including and especially the wealthy. THAT is the change that Americans voted for last fall.
The opponents of reform are spending $1.4 million a day on their efforts to stop reform. The major reason Congress is now getting cold feet on health care reform is that the opposition is successfully mobilizing their own troops to weigh-in. The opposition is also scaring the public with all kinds of untrue claims about health care reform that they are projecting into the mainstream media's echo chamber.
Our job now is to push-back against the vested special interests, to project the public's voice and concerns, and to get health care reform efforts in Congress moving again:
Here's what you can do THIS WEEK:
1. Write a brief personal letter to your own member of Congress -- send it to their local district office. Tell the your own personal health care story (everybody has one), and that you want Congress to move forward on health care reform. Personal stories are very powerful and remind lawmakers what's really at stake for everyday New Yorkers.
2. On this coming Tues. July 28, call your own member of Congress at their local district office. Tell them to:
- keep moving forward on health care reform
- spend whatever it takes to do it right, even if it's more than $1 trillion
- require the wealthy pay their fair share
- require employers to provide coverage for their workers
- create a strong, Medicare-like public option so that Americans have a "way out" of private insurance
3. Attend a rally on City Hall steps at 12 noon this Tues. July 28. As part of a national day of action organized by the AFL-CIO and Health Care for America Now, a broad coalition of NYC public interest groups and labor unions will be calling on our our NYC Congressional delegation to provide crucial leadership to put health care reform back in motion and support President Obama's call for action. We will also thank them for the good proposals they have already put on the table, and call on them to stand firm in the face of the onslaught that the opponents of reform are throwing at them. The vast majority of everyday New Yorkers want REAL health care reform, and this is a winning issue for lawmakers who do the right thing.
4. If you haven't already done so, please make a contribution so that we can keep providing key leadership to our local universal health care movement at this critical time. Simply go to our website (www.metrohealthcare.org) and click on the "donate" button in the left column.
REMEMBER... NOW IS THE TIME -- IT'S "HEALTH CARE SUMMER!"
Thanks for all you do in the fight for health care for all New Yorkers and all in America.
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JULY 11, 2009: Support New York’s Fight for Health Care for All
We here at the Health Care for All Campaign need your financial help to carry out the job of "Health Care Summer".
We have been very distracted lately with all the numerous daily developments in Congress as they move forward on national health care reform legislation (see our previous email of Thurs. July 9.) We're very hopeful about the outcome, but know it will take all of us working vigorously together over the course of this summer to make the right kind of reform happen.
Consequently, we've not been able to sufficient remind you about our annual dues campaign, now underway. We want to thank all those who've already re-joined the "Health Care for All" team for 2009 (see below.) But quite frankly, we're falling significantly short of our usual response by this time of year.
We suspect many of you may also have been distracted with various matters, so want to ask you to dig out that letter and/or email we sent you several weeks back (almost 2 months now!) and make your donation, if you haven't already done so. Your support will enable us to help keep leading the charge here in New York for REAL health care reform legislation in Congress.
We are well aware that the current economic downturn may be a hindrance for some to give as generously as you'd like. In that case, please just give what you can. Despite the recession, health care legislation is moving this year, and we need your help now regardless.
In fact, as President Obama has stated, economic recovery will not be possible without fundamental health care reform. So think of your financial support for us as an investment and vote of confidence in your and our nation's future. We will only be able to continue our crucial leadership roles here in New York City, across the state (through Health Care for All New York), and across the nation (through the Universal Health Care Action Network) if we have sufficient resources to carry on. Without strong support from you and others, we'll be limited at the very moment when it's all coming to a boil down in DC.
The vested special interests who profiteer from our current dysfunctional health care system are doing everything they can to either stop reform outright, or shape it in ways to their benefit. They have megabucks to throw around, and are doing that to the tune of $1.4M per day, according to recent news reports. Together with President Obama's political opponents, the special interests are working hard to disempower the change the American people voted for last fall, and to turn this fight into just another inside-the-beltway-politics-as-usual matter. We can't let that happen this time.
While we'll never be able to match our opponents resources, we do have the vast majority of New Yorkers and the American public on our side, and we are working hard to mobilize them to speak out and speak up for the health care reform that "REAL AMERICA" wants and needs. We don't necessarily need the millions the enemies of reform have, but we do need enough to carry out our task at hand.
Won't you help us rise to the occasion, now that "Health Care Summer" has arrived?
Please use the "donate" button in the lower left column.
One more thing: in addition to making a personal contribution, please make sure to approach your union, community group, professional association, or congregation for financial support too. Our strength comes from individuals and organizations coming together from across New York to forge a united front for health care for all in New York and across America.
Thanks as always for your support, and for all you do in the struggle for health care justice.
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July 9, 2009: It’s Health Care Summer!
We are so close. National health care reform legislation is being drafted in both houses of Congress RIGHT NOW, and bills are headed for floor debates and votes BY THE END OF THIS MONTH.
To borrow a moniker from the civil rights movement of a few decades back, it's "HEALTH CARE SUMMER" for all of us who have long been fighting for health care for all. After almost a century of struggle since the very first Presidential candidate proposed national health care (Teddy Roosevelt in 1912), the moment finally is here, and our time has arrived. It's time to roll up our sleeves and make health care reform happen -- THIS SUMMER!
What are the possible outcomes?
good reform -- guaranteeing quality affordable coverage to all in America
bad reform -- turn everything over to the private market
no reform -- something which has happened time and time again (with a few exceptions) over the past century
The good news: we now have a President and Congressional leaders all committed to passing comprehensive health care reform this year. The challenge will be for them to face down and overcome opposition from the vested special interests and political partisans that are trying to either stop health care reform altogether, or shape it in ways that benefit the current profiteers.
President Obama and Congressional leaders need our help. Otherwise, it will be inside-the-beltway-politics-as-usual, all the usual suspects and stakeholders will determine the health care reform we get, and the voice of the American people and our concerns will not be heard or considered.
What's Happened So Far:
Congressional committees are drafting legislation focusing in the following areas:
Expanding health insurance coverage options to universal
Reforming our health care delivery system to reduce and control costs, and improve quality of care
Financing the above reforms
The committees of jurisdiction, and their members from the New York City area, are:
Senate Finance -- Sen. Charles Schumer
Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) -- no NY member
House Education and Labor: Rep. Yvette Clarke (Brooklyn); Rep. Tim Bishop (Suffolk); Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (Nassau)
House Energy and Commerce: Rep. Eliot Engel (Bronx, Rockland, Westchester); Rep. Anthony Weiner (Brooklyn, Queens)
House Ways and Means: Rep. Charles Rangel (Manhattan, Bronx); Rep. Joseph Crowley (Queens, Bronx)
NOTE:
Sen. Schumer is leading the effort for creation of a new public health insurance plan in the Senate (see also below.)
Rep. Rangel chairs the Ways and Means Committee, which deals with all the related financial issues.
Rep. Crowley is the chair of the "New Democrats" caucus in the House.
The committees are all working off of the framework President Obama put forward in his election campaign last year:
- Expand Medicaid & the State Child Health Insurance Program (SCHIP)
- Require large & medium-sized employers to offer coverage to their employees
- Create a new “health insurance exchange” to offer standardized private health plans
- Create a new “public health insurance plan” option for people to choose
- Provide subsidies for low-moderate income families and small businesses to purchase coverage
- Regulate private insurance – guaranteed issue, community rating, standard, comprehensive benefits
- Fix some aspects of Medicare Part D, and end over-payments to private "Medicare Advantage" plans
- Incentivize chronic disease management
- Incentivize prevention, primary care, and community-based care
- Since then, President Obama has outlined the following goals for Congress during his White House Summit in March:
- Reduce long-term growth of health care costs for businesses and government
- Protect families from bankruptcy or debt because of health care costs
- Guarantee choice of doctors and health plans
- Invest in prevention and wellness
- Improve patient safety and quality of care
- Assure affordable, quality health coverage for all Americans
- Maintain coverage when you change or lose your job
- End barriers to coverage for people with pre-existing medical conditions
What's Happening Now:
The House committees are all working together on a joint "Tri-Committtee" bill (see http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2009/06/health-care-reform-house-dems.shtml for summaries and various fact sheets.) The effort is being led by House leadership (Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer) and spearheaded by the Progressive Caucus, the Black Caucus, the Latino Caucus, and the Asian-American Caucus. Their bill is expected to go to a full floor debate and vote by the end of this month, before Congress recesses for their August vacation period.
The Senate committees are each working separately for now, each handling different aspects of a bill that will be merged together for a full floor debate and vote, also expected by the end of this month.
The House bill is expected to be the most politically progressive. In the Senate, the HELP Committee bill is expected to be progressive, and the Finance Committee bill more moderate/centrist. For a comparison chart that summarizes the major Congressional bills, see http://www.kff.org/healthreform/upload/healthreform_tri_full.pdf.
If Congress sticks to its timetable, a conference committee will be appointed in September to negotiate out the differences between the two bills, a final bill will be voted on in each chamber by the middle of October, and then will go to the President for his signature.
What are the key contentious issues in these bills?
- Whether or not to create a new public health insurance plan open to all, and what it should look like
- How to regulate private insurance
- What should be in the standard benefits package
- Whether or not to require employers to provide coverage to their workers
- Whether or not to require individuals/families to purchase insurance if not provided by an employer
- How to assure that coverage is affordable to obtain and use, especially for low and moderate income people and families
- What level of subsidies to provide to individuals and/or small businesses
- How much to expand Medicaid eligibility
- How to control costs and create savings in the delivery system
- How to fund reform so that it is "budget neutral" over the next 10 years
- Whether or not to tax employer-provided benefits
- Whether or not and how to include immigrants in health care reform
- Whether or not to include comprehensive reproductive and sexual health care services
- How to assure equity, and reduce racial, ethnic, and gender disparities
- Generally, what are advocates' key goals for these bills?
- Guarantee comprehensive, affordable coverage to everyone
- Establish a new "robust", Medicare-like public health insurance plan open to everyone to choose
- Strongly regulate private insurance
- Additional key concerns for New York advocates are:
- No trade-offs between comprehensive benefits and affordability protections -- both must be included in reform
- No taxation of employer-provided benefits
- Address racial and ethnic disparities in health care
- Include immigrants in health care reform
- Provide the full range of comprehensive reproductive and sexual health services
- Federal reform must be a floor, not a ceiling -- protect the good things New York has done and allow states to go further
What ever happened to the idea of a single-payer national health insurance program?
Many of us have long advocated for a single-payer national health insurance program and believe it to be the superior model for reform. Sadly, despite the best efforts of many, that is not the approach Congress is taking this year. However, thanks to the efforts of many advocates, some of whom actually committed civil disobedience and were arrested, testimony was presented to several committees about the merits of such an approach. In addition, over 80 members of the House have co-sponsored the U.S, National Health Insurance Act (H.R. 676, Conyers), and the American Health Security Act (S. 703, Sanders; H.R. 1200, McDermott) has been introduced in the Senate and House.
A single-payer national health insurance program remains our longer-term objective for health care coverage in America. In the meantime, advocates are working to get the best bill possible out of Congress this year, and working to make sure that the reform bill will provide a strong foundation for a single-payer program in the future. The effort continues, and the outcomes of this year's fight will determine our options to proceed. A "robust", Medicare-like public health insurance plan option could prove vitally important.
Finally,... what YOU can do:
1. Get in the fight. Dig down to engage your networks to create a "hue and cry" for comprehensive health care reform. We must change the political dynamic in Congress from inside-the-beltway-politics-as-usual to what's needed out in "real America." Burst that insider bubble!
2. Figure out what your group or network or union does best, and DO THAT (...and kick it up a notch!)
3. Pick up your phone or write a simple old-fashioned personal letter to Senators Gillibrand, Schumer, and YOUR member of Congress. (Note: send letters to their local district offices, NOT to Capitol Hill.) TELL THEM YOUR OWN PERSONAL HEALTH CARE STORY. Everyone has one -- what's yours? Then tell them what you need to see happen in health care reform that will benefit you -- again, keep it personal as you discuss any policy issues. Use your own words and experiences. (NOTE: Don't send emails as they are routinely not read -- send a personal letter or make a personal phone call.)
4. Watch for further action alerts from us. Things will be moving fast and furiously over the coming weeks, and we will often need people to respond quickly, so get your networks ready to act.
5. Make a donation to help us lead the fight here in New York. Simply click on "donate" button on the left column.
Thanks for all you do in the fight for health care for all in New York and across America. It's "HEALTH CARE SUMMER" -- yes, we can!
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