Healthcare for the Holidays: Winning Single-Payer in PA

Written by: Chuck Pennacchio on Dec 8, 2007 9:52 AM EST

After one week of intensive lobbying on our single-payer legislation, I can say with confidence that we have a 50-50 chance of winning in the next six-to-seven months.  The dynamics are fluid and they favor a citizen movement such as ours...like never before.   Chuck 

"THE FAMILY & BUSINESS HEALTHCARE SECURITY ACT"
SENATE BILL 300 - HOUSE BILL 1660
 
#1 Visit our website at http://healthcare4allpa.org to learn more and to educate others.
#2 Lobby your State Legislators using the talking points below.  Find your representative at: http://healthcare4allpa.org/legislators.htm
#3 Write letters to the editor, using the talking points below.
#4 Donate $10, $25, $50 – whatever you can – to our volunteer, citizen-centered education and lobbying effort: http://healthcare4allpa.org/donate.htm
#5 Circulate a petition and return it to us:
http://healthcare4allpa.org/documents/petition_s.pdf
 
 
Talking points:
1.4 million Pennsylvanians have no health insurance. Millions more are underinsured. Untold thousands more think they have good coverage until the corporate-run insurance company rejects their claim based on technicalities, "pre-existing" conditions—or denies life-saving procedures arbitrarily defined as "experimental."

We are left with a system that delivers reduced preventive care; delayed treatment; difficulty seeing specialists; costly co-pays & deductibles, and caps on treatment costs.
Single-payer universal healthcare replaces the "Medical-Industrial-Complex" of corrupt insurance companies and their allies with a simple plan using existing State and Federal funds, a 3% earnings tax and a 10% business payroll tax (a huge savings for most individuals and employers).  The outcome would be an improved Medicare-For-All system of publicy-funded, priavtely-provided universal healthcare.

Once Pennsylvania demonstrates to the nation what 87 countries have already discovered, single-payer universal healthcare will become national policy along the lines of Congressman John Conyers' HR 676.  Congressman Conyers made this point precisely when he came to Pennsylvania in April to endorse the "Family and Business Healthcare Security Act."
Over 100 Pennsylvania State Legislators have had discussions with Health Care for All Pennsylvania, and nearly half of them have signed up as co-sponsors.

As the only statewide single-payer campaign in the nation with bills before the House and the Senate, as well as the commitment of our Governor to sign the legislation upon reaching his desk, Pennsylvania is stands to lead the nation out of this crisis, much as we did in 1776. 

Consider:
• Administrative costs for greedy insurance companies exceed 30% of the cost of healthcare compared to just 3% for Medicare.  (This step would save Pennsylvania taxpayers 6-7 billion dollars.)
• The U.S. already spends double what most industrialized
countries spend per person on healthcare.
• 18,000 Americans die annually from being uninsured.
• Thousands of the insured die from services denied or
delayed by insurance companies.
• Life expectancy in the U.S. is among the shortest in the
industrialized world.
• Infant mortality rate in the U.S. is among the highest in the industrialized world. Only Latvia is worse.
• We pay far more per person than any other country.
• Approximately 50% of personal bankruptcies in the U.S. relate directly to medical bills.

Senate Bill 300
House Bill 1660

YOU MAKE THE DIFFERENCE.  Please act now and spread the word.  Remember, we have the economic (savings, efficiency, competitiveness), moral (lives saved and enhanced), and democratic (65% of citizens want it!) high grounds on our side.  Now we need to put our citizen power to work and demand single-payer universal healthcare now!

Thanks for all you do. 

Yours in unity,

Chuck

Chuck Pennacchio, Ph.D.
Executive Director, Health Care for All Pennsylvania
Chuck@HealthCare4ALLPA.org
 
 
HEALTHCARE FOR ALL PENNSYLVANIA
For more information, or to make a contribution, contact:
Health Care for All Pennsylvania
P.O. Box 828
Levittown, PA 19058
 
http://healthcare4allpa.org
 
Disclaimer: Healthcare for all Pennsylvania is a citizen-based, 501(c)(4) non-profit organization of people with diverse backgrounds from across the state, working on behalf of the people of Pennsylvania to replace our broken Medical-Industrial-Complex with a system that works for all of us.  Copntributions are not tax-deductible.

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