Health care reform depends on us now

Lobbyists for the big insurance companies, pharmacuetical companies, and hospital chains are pouring millions into the fight over health care reform.  It's a sign of their power in our system, to be sure, but also of how frightened they are of the possibilty of real reform.  That's where we the people can make a difference - making sure this golden moment isn't stolen by the big-money lobbyists who usually control Congress.

Writing at www.truthout.org, Bill Moyers and Michael Winship report that "the health care industry alone has six lobbyists for every members of Congress and more than 500 of them are former Congressional staff members." 

"They want a public option about as much as you want the swine flu," writes Moyers and Winship, "and just to be certain Congress sticks with the program, the industry has been showering megabucks all over Capitol Hill."  $1.5 million has gone to Senate Finance Committee chair Max Baucus, a Democratic senator from Montana.

An October 11 article in the New York Times reports that most of the serious proposals to bring health care costs under control - such as plans to tax high-cost health coverage and to establish an independent commission to control Medicare costs - "have fallen victim to organized interests and parochial politics." 

Yet the battle is far from over and members of Congress are feeling the pressure to produce a plan that actually expands coverage and brings medical costs under control. 

During a traumatic year of bank bail-outs and 10 percent unemployment, the American public has grown increasingly cynical about politicians and the way Washington works.  Members of Congress will have hell to pay if they pass a health reform plan that fattens profits margins for the special interests but fails to deliver for mainstreet America.

So can average people really impact this debate?  Yes, according to an October 11 article in the Philadelphia Inquirer.  "At the end of the day, the most influential are those individuals who sit down and take the time to thoughtfully address the issues."

Marc Stier, Pennsylvania coordinator for Health Care for America Now (HCAN) is quoted in the Inquirer article.  "When you think of a political movement, you think about getting 100,000 people on the street," said Stier.  "But really, it's meetings of 20-40 people, night after night, in small rooms around the state, in which you build a membership. . . . If 30,000 (people) are willing to make calls, to write letters, to visit congressional offices, you can make a difference."

Have you made a call, written a letter, or visited your members of Congress?  This is the time to get active.  Contact PHAN if you want more information about how to get involved.