Daily Musing March 14, 2010

Dear Changers,

It looks like Health Care is coming up for a final vote this coming week.  This is an issue that has been on the table since Teddy Roosevelt.  Help take the first step and phone bank.  I am enclosing an entire letter from Health Care for America Now.  Please try to take some time over the next day or two and make some calls.

Let me know how you do.

Meg

Dear Friends,

After 20 months, this part of our campaign for quality, affordable health care for all is coming to an end. We are fairly sure the critical vote in the House of Representatives will take place by Saturday.

The vote will be very close, and health care reform won't be enacted without an outpouring of grassroots energy that can overcome the powerful insurance company interests that are trying to block it.

So many of you in Pennsylvania have been doing so much for so long. Over the last three weeks, Pennsylvanians have led the way at two events in Washington. Hundreds of you joined us for the end of Melanie's March and for the exciting anti- health insurance company rally last week. 

But whether you have been an active participant in the campaign or not, I must ask you to do everything you can in this crucial last week to make our dream a reality. 

Phone banking

Four Democratic members of the House, Representatives Altmire (CD 4), Carney (CD 10), Dahlkemper (CD 3), and Kanjorski (CD 11) are being hammered by paid advertising and phone calls. We need to encourage their constituents to call them this week and tell them to support health care reform. 

As many of you know we have a wonderful phone banking system, called ACTIVATE, that enables us to connect you to strong supporters of health care reform in each of these districts. You can ask them to make a call and then automatically connect them to their member of Congress. The process is easy and it is fun. People appreciate being reminded to take action on this issue.

You can join our phone banking any time of the day. You just need to go through a quick training. We will be holding trainings once or twice a day between now and the vote. The next ones are scheduled for 4:00 and 6:00 pm on Monday March 15. 

The call in number for the training is 712-451-6000 Passcode is 275893#. RSVP to Athena Ford at aford@philaup.org or 267-257-6968.

Rallies Tuesday and Wednesday

With MoveOn.org we will be holding rallies for health care reform at or near Congressional offices on Tuesday and Wednesday. Here is the schedule. Please join us!

CD 4 Congressman Jason Altmire

Aliquippa Office: Tuesday, March 16th, 12:00 PM RSVP here 

CD 3 Congresswoman Kathy Dahlkemper

Erie Office: Tuesday, March 16th, 12:00 PM RSVP here 

CD 10 Congressman Chris Carney

Williamsport Office: Tuesday, March 16th, 12:00 PM RSVP here 

Clarks Summit Office, Tuesday, March 16th, 5:00 PM RSVP here 

Sunbury Office, Tuesday, March 16th, 5:30 PM RSVP here 

CD 11 Congressman Paul Kanjorski

Scranton Office, Tuesday, March 16th, 12:00 PM  RSVP Here

CD 17 Congressman Tim Holden 

Harrisburg Federal Building Wednesday, March 17th, 12:00 PM RSVP here 

Lebanon Office, Tuesday, March 16th, 5:30 PM RSVP Here

Reading: Penn St. Bridge, Wednesday, March 17th, 12:00 PM RSVP here. 

What is at stake

I just want to remind you what is at stake this week. 

The health care bill is, we know, not all we wanted. But it will save tens of thousands of lives a year; keep hundreds of thousands out of bankruptcy; reduce fear and uncertainty for tens of millions, and save all of us a great deal of money on insurance premiums. 

Among other things, the legislation will:

·        Change the business model for insurance companies by prohibiting them from denying people coverage or charging them more if they have a pre-existing condition or are women; by limiting premiums on the basis of age; and by eliminating annual and lifetime cap on coverage.

• Create insurance exchanges that allows individuals and small businesses to come together to purchase insurance with the same premiums and benefits received by employees of big businesses and members of Congress.
• Subsidize insurance for working people and the middle class. Families of 3 with an income of $27,000 a year will pay about $90 a month for good, comprehensive health insurance. That is a subsidy of over $1000 a month. The subsidies help the middle class as well, providing benefits for families of 4 with incomes up to $88,000 a year.
• Create a number of programs that will increase the supply of primary care doctors; encourage more research on best medical practices; and carefully change payment and delivery systems so that health care costs, and thus insurance premiums, increase more slowly.

In the tradition of American political reform, the legislation also sets the stage for further reforms both at the federal level and here in Pennsylvania. The legislation will create the policy framework and the political pressure for its own expansion. A public option, either nationwide or in Pennsylvania, will be easier to enact in the future as will even more dramatic reforms if we take this step now.
And it's not just about health care. The other progressive reforms we want--legislation that creates jobs; that reduces our reliance on greenhouse gas producing energy; that protects an open internet; that reforms immigration--will be much harder to attain if we don't stand up to the corporate interests blocking health care reform and enact legislation this week. 

With your help, we can do this. Please join us this week.

Thank you.

Marc

Marc Stier
PA State Director
Health Care For America Now
MarcStier@hcanpa.org
(215) 880-6142

-- 
Meg Makransky Sheketoff
Meg@sheketoff.com
Bethechangebaederwood.com