2/12/09

Celebrate Lincoln's Birthday the Healthy Way

Below is hijacked in its entirety from DrSteveB at dKos:


National Call-In Day for Single-Payer Healthcare


Celebrate Lincoln's birthday by supporting single-payer healthcare.



Thursday, February 12th is the third National Call-In Day to support real universal national health care, single-payer healthcare, HR 676!


Call Congress and the White House. Every call counts!


If you don't know your Representative, or want a script, all of the information you need for a successful call is here on HealthCare-Now's National Call-In Day page.


If you know your Representative, the Capitol Switchboard number is 866 - 338 - 1015 . Ask to be connected to your Representative, and then ask him or her to co-sponsor HR 676.


The White House number is: 202- 456- 1414 .


Please fill out the form on HealthCare-Now's Call-In Day page to let us know who you called.


Learn more about single payer and HR-676 here, and wonk yourself out on it here.




HR-676 had 93 co-sponsors in the last congresssional session


Just reintroduced two weeks ago on January 26, 2009 (timed to keep the HR-676 number), it currently has 42 co-sponsors so far", a number that is growing daily.


One important short term goal is to get over 100 co-sponsors and demand that the Congressiomnal Budget Office do an honest and thorough analysis of it. Just as they have done for other bills with far less natiowide support.


Additional Single Payer News:


1. National Campaign Launched with Change.org


Last week, Healthcare-NOW! was selected by Change.org, as part of their "Ideas for Change in America" competition, to sponsor their single-payer healthcare "idea." Change.org presented their ten winning ideas to Macon Phillips, Director of New Media for the White House, who said, "I can speak with authority that a lot of people in the transition were paying attention to the competition."


2. Leadership Conference for Guaranteed Health Care Officially Launches


On Janury 28th, Healthcare-NOW! took part in the official launch of the single-payer coalition in Washington, DC.


Member organizations include the California Nurses Association, Physicians for a National Health Program, Progressive Democrats of America, HealthCare-Now, All Unions Committee for Single Payer, Americans for Democratic Action, American Medical Student Association, American Patients United, 1199 SEIU United Health Care Workers East and West, A. Philip Randolph Institute, Act-UP, and a whole bunch of other organizations. Find out more at guaranteedhealthcare4all.org.


3. Americans Should Not Stand for Lock-down on Single-Payer Discussion


As an ardent advocate of single-payer healthcare for many years, I am more than a little frustrated by Washington insiders—beholden to healthcare corporations—telling the American people that passing single-payer healthcare reform, specifically HR. 676, the United States National Health Care Act, can’t happen.


The fact is they are standing in the way of it happening.


4. Another Poll Shows Majority Support for Single-Payer


A New York Times/CBS News poll released last week shows, yet again, that the majority of Americans support national health insurance.


The poll, which compares answers to the same questions from 30 years ago, finds that, "59% [of Americans] say the government should provide national health insurance, including 49% who say such insurance should cover all medical problems."


Only 32% think that insurance should be left to private enterprise.


Read the full report here (.pdf)



end of DrSteveB's most excellent action item post. Reprinted with permission too!

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