This afternoon, I presented a resolution to the Board of Rio Arriba County Commissioners urging the President and Congress to speedily pass health care reform. It passed unanimously. Tomorrow, I will pdf the resolution and forward it to New Mexico's statewide papers, and will walk an orginal into the offices of Senators Jeff Bingaman and Tom Udall.
The Commissioners discussion revolved around the need for our Senators to pressure Senate leadership into passing a sidecar "fix" through reconciliation to their HCR bill, enabling the House to support it.
Resolutions are often an excellent means of garnering press attention and telling your Congresscritters you are serious. Commissioners, Mayors, City Councilors represent constitutencies and votes. Their resolutions matter.
Many years ago, Rio Arriba County became the first local government to pass a resolution condemning the leaked Patriot 2 document revoking citizenship of whomever for whatever. The resolution spurred a storm of statewide press, prompting a personal thank you to the Commissioners from constitutional advocate and then US Representative Tom Udall.
Of course, being a County Department head in a small rural county makes it easy for me to get the ear of my Commission. But you can, too. Try working through your county health department or through a locally well-known healthcare advocate.
I will post the text of the resolution below. While it did not inlude specific legislative recommendations, these can be made at the time of the presentation.
One resolution might not mean much. But many resolutions can become a movement.
Resolution 2010-054: Urging President Obama and the US Congress to Swiftly Pass Health Care Reform
WHEREAS, according to the Kid's Count Data Book, 20.7</% of New Mexico children under 18 were uninsured and 33.5%, or one-third of all New Mexico adults between 18 and 64 years of age were uninsured in 2006; and</p>
WHEREAS, 25% or one-quarter of all Rio Arriba children lived in poverty in 2007, while the median Rio Arriba family income of $32,935 is well below the median US income of $44,334; and
WHEREAS, over 50% of wages earned in Rio Arriba County are earned through retail and service industries which typically do not provide insurance benefits; many other Rio Arriba residents are either self-employed or small business owners who have been priced out of the insurance markets; and
WHEREAS, rural counties such as Rio Arriba experience difficulties recruiting and retaining health care professionals; and
WHEREAS, rising insurance prices are forcing mid- to large-sized employers in Rio Arriba County to either drop insurance or cut payroll; and
WHEREAS, proposals for health care reform will expand coverage to include the working poor, put in place necessary regulations on insurers, and include funding for expanded primary care/behavioral health services;
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF RIO ARRIBA COUNTY COMMISSIONERS that health care is a right and not a privilege. The Board of Rio Arriba County Commissioners, speaking on behalf of our taxpaying citizens, strongly urges the President and Congress to adopt a health care reform bill that curbs the abuses of the insurance industry and extends affordable high-quality medical care to all Americans as speedily as possible.
PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED this 28th DAY OF JANUARY, 2010
Tomorrow I will forward this text to my list serve of New Mexico county health directors and health council coordinators to urge them to pass resolutions of their own, to write editorials and to initiate calling campaigns.
Please feel free to copy whatever you can use. Modification to suit your needs is welcome!