Yes We Can! Long Island Rally for a Strong Public Option
A STRONG PUBLIC OPTION IS A MUST . . .
WITHOUT IT, REFORM IS A BUST!
Saturday, September 12, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
at the steps of the Nassau County Court House
262 Old Country Road, Mineola
Read below for Press Statement on the Rally
Good afternoon. I am Marvin Kreutzberger, president of Yes We Can! Long Island. We are an issue-driven, progressive, nonpartisan, advocacy organization representing the interests of all Long Islanders.
Why will we be rallying at this site on Saturday? To make sure that in America no one goes without appropriate and affordable health care.
Last night we heard President Obama give a remarkable, impassioned address on health care and insurance reform to Congress and the nation. What the President said, and what we recognize, is that progressives who are championing health insurance reform are addressing the most important legislative issue of our time.
We need to fix a broken system that fails to meet the needs of Americans. Congress must pass legislation that dramatically reforms our health insurance system. Reform to our minds means a genuine public option, universal coverage, an end to insurance exclusions and restrictions against covering people with pre-existing conditions.
There must be a strong public option in order to stem the dramatically mounting costs of the private market and, as President Obama has stated, to "keep the insurance companies honest." Success hinges on key reforms to provide greater stability and security for every American:
Portability: Should you change or lose a job there will be opportunity for high-quality, affordable health insurance;
Controlling health care costs: by bringing tens of millions of Americans into the health care market;
Accountability: Insurance companies will be held accountable by providing basic consumer protections and requiring coverage for routine checkups and preventive care.
We have come to a critical moment for all Long Islanders who want to see meaningful health care reform achieved and make their voices heard by attending our rally on Saturday, here at the County Court House in Mineola. When we realize that more than half of bankruptcies occur because of a family medical problem we miss the point in too many experiences. Because of that, fifty percent who experience personal bankruptcy, more than three-fourths had health insurance coverage at the time of onset. This must be fixed!
We have come here to protest the egregious profit-making of the health insurance companies who maximize profit at expense of their customers! Here’s just one example: Stephen Hemsley, CEO of United Health Group makes a salary that, based upon a forty-hour work week, pays him $102,000 per hour! A public option offers an alternative that reduces administrative and advertising costs and eliminates salaries that do not enable any of us to remain or to become healthy.
A strong public option for health insurance is a must to achieve health care reform that provides all Americans with access to affordable, quality health care.
I became eligible for Medicare this summer. At the time I was just a year or so old, President Truman asked Congress to enact national compulsory health insurance to be funded by payroll deductions (like Social Security and Medicare) so that all citizens, regardless of their ability to pay, would receive medical and hospital coverage. Republicans resisted.
Truman lambasted Republicans who dominated Congress for holding up progress on medical care. Truman’s accomplishments included: a GI bill that sent 8 million Americans to college; doubling Social Security benefits; increasing the minimum wage.
However, despite his stalwart, ongoing battle for medical insurance he failed to sign into law comprehensive health care and insurance reform.
Harry Truman, frail and failing, sat beside Lyndon Johnson in 1965, as the president signed the Medicare bill. By then I was a married man. What took so long for this nation’s representatives to reach such a sensible decision–an essential decision—a moral decision?
Last night, President Obama told Congress that while he is not the first president to address health care reform, he intends to be the last.
We cannot allow sixty more years to pass without substantive healthcare and insurance reform. Too much is at stake for too many people.
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For more information on the rally (speakers and supporting organizations), please visit or website: http://www.yeswecanli.org/...
To RSVP, go here: http://www.facebook.com/...
Hope to see any Kos Long Islanders on Saturday!