This is not much of a diary, but it is a chance to describe what I learned today by calling Rep. Heath Shuler's office in Asheville, NC. Earlier today I received an e-mail from Mitch Stewart of Organizing for America. In the e-mail, it said that Representative Shuler has been working hard for "real health insurance reform." It asked me to call Rep. Shuler and tell him thanks for his hard work.
I thought, "Really? I thought Shuler and the Blue Dogs were blocking this thing..." So I decided that I would call his office again to find to find out just exactly where he stands.
More below the jump...
That's right, I said "again." I had called Shuler's office a couple of days ago, outraged at the wingnut hootenannnies that I'd seen on t.v. I was clicking around the internet, trying to figure out where Shuler was going to have a public meeting. I was angry. I wanted to confront some of these nutters.
When I called on Tuesday, I went into a bit of a tirade, "I want Congressman Shuler to know that if he stands with these Blue Dogs and blocks real health care reform with a public option, that he can not expect my support in the next election. I will be looking for someone who is willing to stand up for his real constituents!" They took my name and number, and I went down as one of those in strong support of a public option.
However, the letter from Stewart put me in a different frame of mind. "He's working hard on this?" Hmm...maybe I should change my tactics.
This time, I called and said, "Hi. I called a couple of days ago, but I wanted to call again. I want to talk about Health Care."
Myrna, the woman on the phone answered, "Imagine that."
"I know," I said. "Listen, I just think it's a very important issue and I've thought about it a lot over the past couple of days. Before I go any further, though, I'd like to find out where Congressman Shuler stands on the issue."
Myrna took a deep breath and then started in. "Though he's the Blue Dog Whip, Congressman Shuler said, in a statement yesterday, that he is not comfortable with the compromise proposed by the 4 Blue Dogs. At present, he doesn't support any bill that is going through the house, but wants to be clear that it's a long process. He believes that it's more important to get it right, than to get it done quickly."
I then went on to tell her about my friends who own a children's theatre company, which is a national touring company. He and his wife pay $900 per month for their insurance! I told her that any reduction in that would be great, but that, realistically, that even if they felt a reduction over the next couple of years, unless we can get a hold on costs, then eventually the prices will come back up. I talked to her about ERISA, and how insurance companies aren't required to stick to their promises. I talked to her about how ridiculous it is that the insurance companies give out billions of dollars in bonuses for DENYING claims. Then I finally told her that I didn't see how we would ever change the system as long as health care was a for-profit industry. "We have to have a public option," I said.
To which, she responded, "Well, you know I heard someone on t.v. say that we might need to not look at this bill as "Health Care" reform but rather "health insurance" reform" (more on that in a minute). She then asked me if she could put me down in support of a public option, to which I replied, "Please do." Then I moved on to Mitch's request.
"Look, I understand that Congressman Shuler has a wide variety of constituents to represent, and last time I called I was very emphatic that I would not support him if he did not support a public option, but today I'd like to put it another way. Let me just say that if he stands strong and gets us a good health care bill, I will gladly support him, hold signs, make phone calls, the whole nine yards. By the way, is the congressman having an town halls? I would like to stand up for him, if I can."
She then told me that Congressman Shuler is holding a "Tele-Town Hall." She gave me the phone number and PIN so that I could participate. She took my e-mail and promised to send me some more information.
All in all, it took about 15 minutes, but I do feel like Congressman Shuler is listening to his constituents. His plan to hold a "Tele-Town Hall" tells me that he's not going to allow the rabble to rouse themselves and I do plan to get my questions ready for the coming town hall.
In the end, the only thing that sort of irks me is this new language of "health insurance reform" versus "health care reform." As long as we're just patching the existing insurance industry, I don't see how it's going to work. Can we really regulate these guys into looking after the best interests of everyday Americans? I don't know, but I'm sure going to pose that question to Rep. Shuler.
Peace.