If you like the current health care bill put your time where your mouth is

[county worker]

Dear ____________________________

As we head into an election year, the new strategy for killing reform is claiming that members of Congress who vote for it will suffer at the polls.

For months, our opponents have spread lies about reform to scare voters away. But the simple truth about what reform would actually do -- save jobs, guarantee all Americans affordable, stable coverage, and significantly reduce the deficit -- is something most Americans strongly support.

The question is, come November, will the voters know the facts?

OFA supporters have asked for a way to show every member of Congress that if they fight for reform now, we'll back them up this election season.

That's why we're launching "You fight, we'll fight" -- a volunteer pledge bank where you can commit your time to back up candidates and officials who fight hard for health reform.

We're shooting for 1,000,000 hours pledged to spread the word to fellow voters. And if we get there, we'll publish the total hours pledged in USA Today, so there will be no doubt that health reform is both good policy and good politics.

Can you pledge right away?





President Obama has made it crystal clear that he has no intention of walking away from health reform -- and this movement has made its desire to fight on just as clear.

And many members of Congress are already working hard by his side to get the job done. But for those on the fence about whether or not to proceed, knowing you are there to back up a courageous stand can make all the difference.

Your volunteer hours can have a huge impact no matter where you live. You can make calls into critical districts where health reform champions are in jeopardy, write letters to the editor, volunteer for nearby campaigns, or even just talk to friends, family, and neighbors to help cut through the special interest spin.

We'll offer lots of ways to get involved between now and the elections in November, and you can decide which are right for you -- the important thing right now is to publicly show your commitment to fight for those who make health reform a reality.

Please help us hit our ambitious goal of one million volunteer hours pledged:

http://my.barackobama.com/YouFight

We've certainly faced setbacks in this fight. But as President Obama told OFA supporters last week, that only means we need to work that much harder.

Thanks for making it possible,

Mitch

Mitch Stewart
Director
Organizing for America

[customerserviceguy]

1. What "current health care bill"

It's still a "work in progress". Even if Coakley had won, there was still some wrangling needed to be done to get it out of conference committee, and before the election, we already had union workers spared for a mere five years from the Cadillac tax, with everyone else left to the wolves.

It was a disgrace to watch being made, as more and more of the good was chopped away, with nothing but insurance company supplied filler being put into that sausage.

Let's allow it to die a natural death, we can come back to the issue in 2013, with the Congress purged of Blue Dogs this fall, and solid progressives being elected in 2012.

[bearpaw101]

2. The FACTS ARE.. Most Americans DO UNDERSTAND

the SENATE VERSION of the BILL, and simply DO NOT WANT IT!!

REAL INSURANCE reform can be easily achieved as follows..

1) Portability
2) Comprehensive Tort Reform
3) Allow consumers to Purchase Across State lines
4) Sensible Restrictions on Pre-existing Conditions.. to expand availability
5) No Taxation on Employer provided Insurance, regardless of the value

Voilà, the competition will sort out the economics.. without a need for expanded Govt. Bureaucracy; resulting in Reduced Premiums, Expanded Access, No Taxpayer Money and the same High Quality Health Care that is the Envy of the Free World!

It really is.. THAT SIMPLE!!!

[county worker]

3. What?

This all sounds to me like republican double speak. It sounds good but accomplishes nothing but to improve or maintain the status quo of those who already are taken care of by our non working health care system.
Nothing you say helps to provide affordable, quality health care for everyone.

Portability
How does that work? If you are out of a job you can't afford to pay for it. If you change jobs your new employer won't join the plan you previously had. This is good only for those who have the means to buy their own insurance and then it isn't needed.


Comprehensive Tort Reform
That doesn't say anything. Patients need to have a way to be compensated for medical errors.
I was a controller at a medical clinic until a few years ago. The cost of malpractice insurance is not what is causing health care costs to go up. Sure it is expensive but nothing like the cuts in reimbursement amounts that insurance companies do year to year.
Nothing like the increase in the cost of pharmaceuticals from month to month.
Tort reform is a right wing meme that sounds good to people but is meaningless if the idea is to cut health care costs to consumers.

Allow consumers to Purchase Across State lines
This will allow insurance companies to locate in the states with the least regulations and then more people will be hurt no consumer will benefit from this idea!


Sensible Restrictions on Pre-existing Conditions.. to expand availability
Again this means nothing. What the hell are sensible restrictions? How about NO! restrictions? You buy insurance why the hell doesn't it cover you for everything? Do you get any money back if they don't cover what condition you have? Hell no! The keep your premiums and deny you coverage sensible or not!


No Taxation on Employer provided Insurance, regardless of the value
I can go along with this one but we need to raise taxes if we don't have a public option to force insurance companies to compete. Who's taxes do we raise?

[bearpaw101]

4. Not DOUBLE SPEAK at all..

IN Fact.. many of these arguments are reminiscent of all the naysayers that railed aginst the break up of the phone companies decaded ago..

We are all now reaping the benefits of those actions.. "better service and cheaper costs".

Portability requires that an employer allow you to bring along your own policy.. and contribute to your policy at the same rate that the company currently contributes to it's own offerd coverage.

Tort Reform on some level.. is necessary, in order to remove barriers that currently exists for many doctors/hospitals that do not want to serve certain clients. Good Tort Reform.. will actually expand a consumer rights; of course, we have to be careful not to tilt the edavantage of litigation to either party.

When purchasing over state lines.. the Insurer (has to comply with each States regulations.. regardless of where they call corporate home. In fact, Auto Insurance is a perfect example of this.. and the tremendous savings that competition has resulted in. So your argument does not hold water.

Sensible restrictions have to be put into place.. and President Obama has said this many times himself!! Why, because in order for the current Health Care bill to work, they assume that a certain number of Americans will purchase/participate.. in order to pay for the program. However, if peole thnink that they can wait until they are sick.. or until something catastrophic happens.. then most will opt out, and simply pay the annual penalty, becuae it's cheper! Afterall, they can wait to ppurchase the inurance only when they acutally have a need. That simply does not make any sense at all.. and President Obama has said so many times himself!

[county worker]

5. better service and cheaper costs

You must drink the cool aide by the tanker load!

When the phone co's were broken the big guys like AT&T forced the little guys out of business. All we have today is AT&T. Verizon and a few others. Where are all those baby bells and show me someone who pays less today for their phone bill.

What we got was forced into accepting some kind of "plan."

I kept AT&T as a long distance carrier for years and would not join a "plan." I got punished by having my rates increased!

The trouble in believing what you do is that reality has no way of sinking into your head. Ideology is all you know!


What you posted is the Repub health care plan. It does nothing to provide affordable quality health care for all and that is what the goal was. If your ideas become law there will still be millions with out health care and the 40,000 a month that die because they can't afford treatment will still die and I am willing to bet that you don't even give a shit about that! Those damn self serving lies are killing people!

[bearpaw101]

6. More name calling and sniping..

will not make your false assertions right! This is just a typical delection from the fact.. which you are obviously unwilling to educate yourself on.

It's this kind of apporach (mirrored by the Dem's own leadership) that has doomeed the health Bills to defeat; and not by Republicass mind you.. but by the same Democratic Congress that's had an entire year of Fillibuster proof Senate, and still couldn't convince thier own party members to support the bill.

You obviously are unwilliing to even acknowledge the words of your own President.

Additionally, your 40K per month that you so recklessly assert die because of a lack of health care coverage.. that is an outrageously false statement!!!

Hey, if the Dem's own fillibuster proof senate couldn;t even agree on a bill.. then who's drinking the cool aide here?

[Hello_Kitty]

7. "your own President"? You Canadian or something? eom

[bearpaw101]

8. No He's my President too Kitty..

Just driving home a point.. Note in each of "County Workers" previous threads.. he seems intent on devisive name calling; an implication that I am somehow less than or removed from his special place of democratic Nirvana.. simply because I have a diverse, fact based.. and informed point of view.