What Will Break the Single-Payer Media Blackout?

Published May 04, 2009 @ 09:48PM PT

Prompted by a comment from Carla Rautenberg, I did a quick scan of my Google Reader RSS feed to see if there was a national news story on single-payer recently that I just overlooked. Sure enough, there was one – but it was yet another story talking about the impact single-payer advocates will have on getting the public plan passed. That fits a pattern we’ve seen throughout the year. It makes me wonder what will have to happen to break through the media blackout on single-payer. Will Dr. Quentin Young have to go through the town square naked like Lady Godiva to get noticed?

By the way, not being the preferred plan of the president is scarcely an excuse. As referenced earlier today, op-eds, working groups and radio messages focusing on what was in essence John McCain’s health care plan are regularly pushed through the media without much resistance. The complete lack-of-a-plan presented in the GOP alternative budget got some ink, despite being a far less serious plan than HR 676. The rumor mill around the Wyden-Bennett plan has subsided but was a frequent topic of speculation only a few months ago. The Massachusetts plan gets regular mention and analysis, usually in its own right, but surprisingly frequently through the lens of “could we nationalize this?”, despite no push from Obama to adopt the Massachusetts model as-is.

I’m not naïve or overly hopeful about what motivates our modern media machine. It feeds on stories about conflict, which is why the most often mention of the single-payer plan and those who support it are in the context of the “rift” they might create among supporters of health care reform. It feeds on the new and surprising, which is why single-payer most recently is mentioned as part of the oh-so-new public plan. When something meets our expectation – like a grassroots single-payer movement trying to influence health care reform – it tends to get ignored. I don’t recall “Mother Theresa Still Caring for the Poor” being considered a must-read story in the 1980s, even though it was arguably more important than half the gossip-y stories on any given day. Finally, the great beast feeds on celebrity. Obama is one of the few people guaranteed to sell papers, at least right now. Ted Kennedy has barely been seen in Washington, for obvious reasons, but his efforts to broker a health care compromise pop up in the news on average every two weeks. Compared to those two luminaries, you’re not going to get hits on your news site from a big picture Rep. George Miller – the only congressional chairman with jurisdiction on health care who’s currently a cosponsor of HR 676. These are preposterous rules, to be sure, but it's the world we inhabit.

The shame of it is that if we ever get to a single-payer system in this country, it will be because of outside-in pressure from the ground up, not from an inside-out confluence of committee chairs in Congress. Grassroots organization is important, yes, but so is a solid presence in the media to change the debate and attract new recruits. Would a more aggressive and conflict-driven approach to conservative or so-called “moderate” politicians of either party, similar to the political targeting employed by labor unions and other single-issue advocacy groups, net the single-payer movement more exposure, or cheapen its message? What could generate a “surprise” to focus the media to look with new eyes on the single-payer movement, especially given that it’s been relatively unchanged in its basic message for at least a few decades? Would a sudden surge in the movement in an unexpected place – the South, or a “purple” state like Kansas – generate new buzz and new momentum? What celebrity spokesperson could rally attention toward the advocacy for HR 676 in a similar way to which Al Gore rallies the environmental and clean energy advocates?

The Lady Godiva analogy isn’t just a snappy punchline. She’s revered as a symbol of justice for courageously going way out of her comfort zone to overturn the unjust and unfair government policy of her day. It’s very comfortable to simply have a good argument that your confident can win on the merits. But the 24-hour news cycle doesn’t give points for having a good argument – it gives points for the unexpected.

(Photo credit: mtlin on Flickr.)

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Comments (38)

Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert are the masters of satire. They have shamed the media in the past. Maybe they would take on the media with respect to healthcare reform. There is certainly a wealth of hyprocrisy and spinelessness to satirize on this issue.

Jon Stewart, The Daily Show

c/o Comedy Central

1775 Broadway, 10th Fl.

New York, NY 10019

Re: media blackout on meaningful healthcare reform

Posted by Christine Adams on 05/05/2009 @ 04:48AM PT
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Tim, when you're good, man, you're very, very good. Thank you for doing your part to break the media black-out.

Christine, I will mail my letter to Jon Stewart today.

To all the single-payer supporters out there: this is no time to wimp out!

Our fight for equal access to health care is about democracy, human rights, civil rights, and basic human decency.

If getting naked in public is what it takes to get on the radar, maybe that's what we will have to do.

It ain't gonna a be a pretty picture, but then neither is a wide-angle lens shot of 50 million uninsured Americans--our friends, children, parents, lovers, and neighbors--now THAT's indecent exposure.

Posted by Carla Rautenberg on 05/05/2009 @ 07:50AM PT
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That's right Carla, it's not a pretty picture when we got 50 million uninsured!! Check out the link below:
http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2009/05/insurance_loss.html?elq=70671838AC1747E2B50D7A1466D40FA6

Posted by Mary Acosta on 05/05/2009 @ 10:09AM PT
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I think that the basic problem is that we have fundamentally fallen behind and are undeveloped as a nation of the issues involved in making health care reform. We have to begin with educating the public and ourselves. That will take time. We have naively embraced change without knowing where it will lead us.

I go back thirty five years on universal insurance with global budgeting. There are fundamental problems with PNHP. We will need a different organization to do this. There is no doubt about that. I would be more than willing to discuss this offline.

Third there are no thought leaders left in medicine. The decline in the system and the lack of reform in health care since 1980 means that there is whole generation of public policy and political leaders that have not developed. At Harvard, in the early 1980s there was a fundamental retrenchment of progressive ideas. The progressives who were involved in creating American Medicare and even helping Canadian Medicare get off the ground had been totally excluded from the Harvard debate process by the early 1980s. No one was going to do anything that was not going to happen. So the current generation of public policy wonks have made universal insurance a taboo. I think that Jonathan Oberlander of UNC is probably a proponent of universal health insurance, but I feel that by intuition rather than by specifics.

I would add that by 1987 the Harvard School of Public Health was providing a base for Ivan Boesky, the Bernie Madoff of his day. Just read Den of Thieves by John Stewart.

The quicker people drop the single payer term the better.

I am a survivor of that era so I know what pressures were brought to bear. The only thing that sustained me and gave me a perspective on all of this is that I spent six years in Canada and about six months in England getting education. So I have a permanent impression of what is possible.

That is the reality.

Bohdan A. Oryshkevich, MD, MPH

Posted by Bohdan Oryshkevich on 05/05/2009 @ 09:55AM PT
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At this point, reality is that it's the "single payer" descriptor that is most often used. You can't battle reality - people have tried. There's the "one care" people in so Cal and many others with their ideas but the one that's stuck is "single payer".
Reinhardt is no friend of single payer's.
There are some phenomenal healthcare economists who are also MDs who write and speak well on the topic but Tim's highlight of the media blackout is at the root of the problem in their lack of exposure.
As has been said many times - and above by Foley - it simply has to be pushed from the bottom up, period - and terminology is less important than grass roots action.

Posted by Single Payer on 05/07/2009 @ 06:55PM PT
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Maybe this will help: http://www.healthcare-now.org/2009/05/doctors-challenge-exclusion-of-single-payer-from-health-care-debate/

Posted by Jeff Muck on 05/05/2009 @ 12:05PM PT
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Protests will only work if there are enough people: something like a march on Washington. I do not see that happening.

People in America want order and they do not want to get their medical care from demonstrators. Demonstrators are easy to ridicule.

The reality is that very few experts in America are capable of dealing with the components necessary for universal health insurance with global budgeting. That includes PNHP. Verbal criticisms are likely to go further. Analysis could persuade others. There are few such people.

I think that having a humorist like Jon Stewart skewer the politicians is a good one. But is that going to happen?

Professor Uwe Reinhardt of Princeton is brilliant in his lampoons. But he only shows his pain and is at times not constructive.

Bohdan A. Oryshkevich, MD, MPH

Posted by Bohdan Oryshkevich, MD, MPH on 05/05/2009 @ 04:47PM PT
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Actually, Dr. Oryshkevich, it is possible that the American people want health care more than they want order. That remains to be seen. As half-a-million lose their jobs and their health care each month, perhaps larger numbers of people will become militant.

As for me, I wrote a letter to Jon Stewart today. Did you?

Posted by Carla Rautenberg on 05/05/2009 @ 05:17PM PT
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tim, that was a nice piece. today fifteen people were arrested in max baucus's office during a health care hearing. event did get some news coverage.
on may 13, there is a rally in DC for single payer, er, medicare for all (sorry Dr. O). details can be found on the PDA website. check it out soon.
will write to jon stewart.
dr. O is very right in his opinions on the decline in the system. medicine and public health are the least progressive areas of our society. we need to reinforce the idea that health care is a civil rights issue grounded in human rights principles. we should and can use humor and other "tactics" to draw attention, but we have to have a real message. you WOULD think that over 50 million people not having health care protection would be enough of a message, but evidently it is not (which says alot about how the rest of our society is not very progressive). i think people just need to be shown the connection between lack of access to health care and violation of human rights.
the ignorant will tell you that anyone can get treatment in an emergency room blah blah blah. i am not talking about that.
we are talking about allowing private gatekeepers to access care who charge you alot of money. i am talking about profit-making at the expense of affordability. i am talking about private interests "taking their cut" at the expense of the public at large. i am talking about an exclusionary system as opposed to a universal system. i am talking about a volatile market commodity rather than a sustainable public good.
ONLY when we treat health care in the same vein as human rights will people finally "get it". we can do this. if we stay with the vision of creating a fairer society and PROTECTING people, we will not be swayed by the snake oil salesmen and legislators who would just as soon sell us down the river than do something right by the people. tim is absolutely right. the change in health care has to come from us.

oh yes, 5 million people have lost their health coverage since march of this year.

Posted by Lauren Serven on 05/05/2009 @ 08:01PM PT
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I would agree with Carla that if the situation gets any worse, more civil disobedience may be in order. I am not against civil disobedience. But medicine requires careful planning and calm. We do need consensus. I cannot tell you how I feel about Senators being against universal health insurance or especially against SCHIP.

I would add that I am of the Columbia College class of '68 and I attribute the coming of Reagan to the demonstrations of the 60s.

I do not know and am totally perplexed why Americans do now worry about the 50 million people who have no health insurance. Solidarity has been beaten out of us. I have no health insurance at this moment. But I do not let outrage get the best of me.

I sent an op-ed to the Washington Post yesterday and spent much or all of today working on an innovative anti-obesity proposal for the poor. I cannot send the WP to you until it is rejected.

Bohdan A. Oryshkevich, MD, MPH

Posted by Bohdan Oryshkevich, MD, MPH on 05/05/2009 @ 08:25PM PT
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dr. O
there is a rally for single payer in Dc on may 13. details can be found on the PDA website.

Posted by Lauren Serven on 05/05/2009 @ 08:38PM PT
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Look, I'm all for getting the word out on single payer, by ny means necessary... but the bigger problem here is that Americans are generally poorly informed about healthcare, period. It's a key reason why "healthcare reform" may face the hurdles it is likely to face once an actual bill is up for debate - if you don't explain to people what the "healthcare crisis" is, why we need to solve it, I don' think you can expect a proposed "solution" not to meet with confusion. I know why we need a public plan. I can tell you more than half the people I've worked with have no idea what a public plan is... or why one is needed.

I've said this forever, and honestly... nothing seems to change; but I think progressive activists for healthcare reform need to step back and face the realiy - we're not giving healthcare consumers the information they need. And that problem, ahead of all the others, is one we need, desperately, to solve for.

Posted by NYC Weboy on 05/06/2009 @ 11:54AM PT
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I agree with NYC Weboy. I am not certain that demonstrations are a way to get that information out.

I think that the WSJ published the videos since that creates an impression without substance.

I could write more on that.

Bohdan A. Oryshkevich

Posted by Bohdan Oryshkevich on 05/06/2009 @ 02:01PM PT
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Check out the Ed Show on MSNBC.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsmkmRrvAaU&feature=related

Posted by Martin Bring on 05/06/2009 @ 05:33PM PT
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Bernie Sanders is a survivor. I remember when he was mayor of Burlington and I lived in Montreal. Canadians rely upon feeds from Burlington for their American television.

How many people are out there at that level? Can you name anyone else in the Senate?

The current JAMA has an article that seems to endorse universal insurance. It is from Indiana. But one needs many more such articles:

http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/301/17/1816

This may require a subscription. I am reading it from Columbia.

Bohdan A. Oryshkevich, MD, MPH

Posted by Bohdan Oryshkevich on 05/06/2009 @ 07:31PM PT
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Article 12

1. The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health.

2. The steps to be taken by the States Parties to the present Covenant to achieve the full realization of this right shall include those necessary for:

(a) The provision for the reduction of the stillbirth-rate and of infant mortality and for the healthy development of the child;

(b) The improvement of all aspects of environmental and industrial hygiene;

(c) The prevention, treatment and control of epidemic, endemic, occupational and other diseases;

(d) The creation of conditions which would assure to all medical service and medical attention in the event of sickness.

Posted by Mary Acosta on 05/07/2009 @ 10:22AM PT
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First on Article 12 is the recognition of "the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health."

Posted by Mary Acosta on 05/07/2009 @ 10:25AM PT
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Wow. Tim Foley - is that YOU writing this article? Wow-I'm shocked. With this article, you've redeemed your standing with me. The media blackout is MASSIVE - I mean truly MASSIVE.
I called NPR earlier this week - talked to their news desk. Asked them why there was no coverage of the "Baucus 8". Apparently, someone then told me that there was 1 quick mention of it on the NPR evening news. No further follow up. NPR's resply re the MDs arrested, et al at this senate finance healthcare hearing: "...I guess we felt it wasn't newsworthy..." and "...I'm sure there were other reasons why they were arrested". Me: "You can watch the whole thing on CSPAN and see for yourself - these are notable MDs and Ph.D's trying to get heard and this is what they had to resort to..." NPR: "...I'm sure that isn't true..." Me: "Do you want me to send you link to the CSPAN footage?" NPR: "Nah. That's ok. Thanks for calling..."
Yes - that was NPR!

Posted by Single Payer on 05/07/2009 @ 06:45PM PT
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The reality is that having a few people arrested in the hearing rooms of Congress is not going to get us closer to universal health insurance. It plays into the hands of the opponents of universal health insurance.

It is not going to rally support. I am not certain that it is newsworthy. Demonstrations take place all the time in Washington DC. In China there are hundreds of demonstrations every day and the repressive region remains in power.

How many people will demonstrate next week in Washington for a single payer? Not enough.

Improving the level of debate in the USA on health care and building a coalition will take years of hard and continuous work.

The reality is that Mr. Baucus is elected. Until he feels the heat from his constituency, he will push his own agenda.

I think that universal health insurance with global budgeting is as well as we can do in America. But we are a long way off from that. I do not see the coalition coming into place.

The components are not there to make it happen. Harrassing media outlets for the failure to report on the arrest of a few disruptors is not going to bring us closer to where we need to be.

Sad but true.

Bohdan A. Oryshkevich, MD, MPH

Posted by Bohdan Oryshkevich on 05/07/2009 @ 08:14PM PT
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"First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win." --Gandhi

Posted by Carla Rautenberg on 05/07/2009 @ 08:21PM PT
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tonite i attended a meeting with jim dean, doc howard's brother about health care reform in spite of the meeting being sponsored by the DFA (public option folks) about half of the 150 or so in attendance favored single payer. with that plug for single payer in, the talk is WE NEED FOR PEOPLE TO ACT LIKE ACTIVISTS. dean said it was important to contact legislators. said the senate is so beholden to the insurance industry it's not funny. VISIBILITY. reformers need to make noise and be seen. this is not the first time i have heard this. please put heat on your senators. wouldn't hurt for house members, but reform is more threatened in the senate and the insurance lobbyists have targeted the senate.

Posted by Lauren Serven on 05/07/2009 @ 08:50PM PT
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I think that one of the strategies should be to ask some very specific questions of the Senators. These questions should be provided to the mainstream media without necessarily mentioning the public option or "single payer":

What is a higher priority for you, Mr. Senator: a level playing for privately held insurance companies or access to health care for your constituency? A level playing playing field for privately held insurance companies or efficiency and hard bargaining to keep health care costs down?

How do you expect to rein in health care costs by denying care when ultimately the insurance company executives benefit from greater margins and cost savings? Is it fair to have someone denied marginal care when the executive of the company makes millions per year?

What is your track record on increasing access to health care for the uninsured?

Where will the primary physicians come from?

I think that there should be a well thought brief of materials to ask journalists and the politicians hard questions?

It is also clear that Mr. Obama seems to be passing the baton on these issues to Congress. Perhaps, he is saving his reserves to the second round.

Bohdan A. Oryshkevich, MD, MPH

Posted by Bohdan Oryshkevich on 05/08/2009 @ 11:13AM PT
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I called Senator Max Baucus to ask that a representative for single payer be included in health care reform talks.
1-202-224-2651

Single payer must have a seat at the table when Congress discusses this issue.

Posted by Shanon Batchelor on 05/08/2009 @ 02:39PM PT
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I heard on NPR today (Friday) on the program On Point that President Obama hosted Mr. Dellums and Mr. Kucinich to the White House and told them that the single payer option is not going to be discussed. Does anyone know if this is true?

The program also made the very valid point that until there is public financing of elections there will be no single payer plan.

The other point that was made is that the majority of the population has health insurance and wants no change. That puts a limit on health care reform proposals.

Bohdan A. Oryshkevich, MD, MPH

Posted by Bohdan Oryshkevich, MD, MPH on 05/08/2009 @ 06:11PM PT
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http://www.change.org/actions/view/step_one_end_specal_interest_in_washington

OUR NUMBER ONE CHALLENGE IS ENDING CORPORATE CONTROL OF OUR COUNTRY.

WHAT DOES IT TAKE? THEY HAVE A MEETING ON WHAT HEALTH CARE REFORMS ARE NEEDED? THEY INVITE THE COMPANIES THAT STAND TO LOSE THE MOST IF WE THE PEOPLE GET WHAT IS BEST FOR US. THEY REMOVE EVERYONE THAT SPEAKS OUT FOR SINGLE PAYER. WE MUST DEMAND JUSTICE AND END GREED RULING OUR COUNTRY.

CFJ

Posted by Cherokee Fred Jesus on 05/09/2009 @ 10:09AM PT
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This remindes me of my main inititive ending the war on USA (drugs). It waste 100 billion and jails 1,000,000 YEARLY. To date 20,000,000 Americans have paid with their future. The corportions that make the money pay our reprsentatives to do what is best for them. NOT THE AMERICAN PEOPLE...

END THE WAR ON US PROVIDE SINGLE PAYER FOR ALL AMERICANS END THE GREED THAT CONTROLS OUR COUNTY.

CFJ

Posted by Cherokee Fred Jesus on 05/09/2009 @ 10:14AM PT
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http://www.change.org/actions/view/step_one_end_specal_interest_in_washington

VOTE TO SOLVE OUR NUMBER ONE PROBLEM REPRESENTATIVES THAT ARE PAID TO WORK AGAINST USA..

CFJ

Posted by Cherokee Fred Jesus on 05/09/2009 @ 10:16AM PT
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dr. o
those are very good questions. i have not heard about that meeting with obama and kucinich and dellums. if it is true then mr. obama is a fraud.
the majority of americans have health insurance, but the majority of those with insurance would like to pay less. the private insurers are convincing them that they will have to pay more if a public option is offered or they will have to switch to an "inferior public option".

i am going to see about finding that on point program

Posted by Lauren Serven on 05/09/2009 @ 08:31PM PT
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Germany started "socialized" medicine 1n 1870 under Bismark.

A survey was made of single payer systems and the Swiss were asked why they did not object. The response was that sell to the USA to make enough profit.

Posted by Mark Schindler on 05/09/2009 @ 10:03PM PT
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Universal Health Care and in particular Single-Payer system will need to be fought on the streets, peacefully, mind you, by the way the Civil Rights movement was fought in this country.

Universal Health care is civil right earned by the people of modern industrial nations in 20th Century. All but the US. Recent developments in the Senate and Congress indicate that people will be ignored this time too. We need to unify and come in mass to force the agenda; let them know that there will be price to be payed if they are not on board with this. To start with, we have a promise by the president that there will be a public option accessible to *all*. We need to help him with this and insist on this as non-negotiable item.

Movement for Universal Health Care has to be a grass root *national* movement. As it is now, it is a highly fragmented movement of "enthusiasts" maintaining their own activist sites, and executing their own tactics. It counts for no more then the background noise that our legislators can safely ignore; simply shut the door, and it disappears. It is one of the social phenomena that is in the moment at the level of : "If you close the door you don't hear it, therefore, it does not exist".

We have to change this, we have power to change this, the support for it is a sleeping giant right now that the Washington DC is ignoring - Democrats are troublesome in particular - , and it will be ignored until we come in numbers and flood the streets of America with a simple, coherent, and unified message. And part of that message should be a clear message to the legislators, Democrats in particular, of the consequence of ignoring the promise of our president and the will of people.

Good luck to all.

Posted by Petar Simic on 05/10/2009 @ 04:57PM PT
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Peter, excellent analysis. You are so right that the Democrats are the problem, but of course that's only because they are in power. I don't know where you live, but try to join us in the streets of Washington May 12 or 13--or both.

Folks might like to know about the Leadership Conference for Guaranteed Health Care @ http://guaranteedhealthcare4all.org/ which does encompass quite a number of the groups working for single-payer, EINO (everybody in, nobody out) health care.

Also, check out Malcolm Gladwell's New Yorker article on Davids vs. Goliaths @ http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/05/11/090511fa_fact_gladwell.

Persistence, effort, persistence, focus, persistence.

Posted by Carla Rautenberg on 05/10/2009 @ 06:11PM PT
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Good luck folks....

I do not understand how they can socially justify keeping a profit oriented corporation between a citizen and their doctor.

For example if I want to see a doctor that is not my primary care physician for a particular situation, I cannot.

This cover up of those voicing "single payer", just like silencing complaints about the failed justice system and yet selling a war.... 2010 time to remove some more elected officials....

Posted by jowey styxx on 05/11/2009 @ 03:43PM PT
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Purple state like Kansas? Never heard that one.

As far as the President, Change We Can Believe In, when it comes to health care, he'll compromise quickly with the health care corporate entities, they'll have a photo op, announce national health care, create a bare bones approach that no one will be able to negotiate and that will be it!

There will be no change, the corporations that control health care in this country will dictate to employers what they can offer to employee in their plans and rates. They will never give up. They are fooling the Administration that they'll lower their rates by billions, just wait a couple of years, they'll claim rates are not profitable to their bottom line, they'll back out of a verbal or written deal and there goes you national health plan.

Anyone who has dealt with corporate third party providers can tell you that the process is a virtual death march. They know the law, they wrote them and they will wear you down in paper work for even the simplest procedure or medication until you and your Dr. just give up.

If Obama is serious about national health care, he'll need to include a viable public option, and then quickly put the private sector out of business or they'll sabotage the public plan

Posted by Robert Wertz-Collins on 05/11/2009 @ 09:41PM PT
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what i want to know is....where's the HOPE. i guess it's just too audacious to assume that anything can be done about that unfortunate health system of ours. better just rely on the goodwill of the industry and the rest of the medical industrial complex to fix this problem.
peter is RIGHT ON. the grassroots needs to take to the street (peacefully). there is a movement today and tomorrow in DC. may 30 has been designated a national day of action for reform. get on the web and check stuff out. get involved locally. write and call your legislators. tell them what you think. people don't know how they are being ripped off. we are all supporting a corrupt corporate complex that is bankrupting our people, our businesses, and our nation. not to mention, they are literally sentencing tens of thousands of people a year to death. a non-profit system is the only way to reform. as long as people are being used as market commodities to generate wealth we will always pay too much for insurance and we will always be offered the most expensive treatment. the profit driven system does NOT encourage the best medicine, it encourages the most expensive. there is a difference.
there comes a time in everyone's life when you have to stand up for what you believe in. i know its a pain in the ass...we are all so busy. but think of it this way. there's a little kid in the playground. he's sick and now because of that, he's poor. he's thirsty and he wants a drink at the water fountain. some kids won't let him have a drink. they are telling him he really isn't that thirsty. i know this sounds like a gross oversimplification, but in life that gross simplification argument is sometimes used by those who would rather have you not take any action. we are at a point in history where we are all called to action, like it or not. please reflect on this matter carefully and then, please, take action.

Posted by Lauren Serven on 05/12/2009 @ 05:45AM PT
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Take a look and join the fight...

http://pdsimic.newsvine.com/_news/2009/05/12/2809005-join-single-payer-grass-root-civil-rights-movement

Posted by Petar Simic on 05/12/2009 @ 11:38AM PT
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Thank you, Carla. I could not make it to WDC, hopefully I could make it the next time.

Here is one site that I discovered (I am sure many of you may know for it already, sorry for my ignorance) seems very interesting, very sharp, and I would recommend all single health care activist to join (in addition to joining any other and all the other universal health care activist groups, sites, organizations)

http://www.singlepayeraction.org/about.html

Please join in mass.

Best luck to all.

Posted by Petar Simic on 05/12/2009 @ 12:08PM PT
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There is a petition in change.org for "single Payer". A flood of them will work.

Posted by Mark Schindler on 05/13/2009 @ 06:48AM PT
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I just sent a letter to barackobama.com (in the absence of other credible direct link to the President) in response to their email "Stand with the President on HEALTH CARE" request for support and donation. I encourage all to find a way to express your will directly to the President and hold him accontable for the spirit of his promises on Heath Care reform.

It is time for him to make doing the right thing a priority (over trying to build a consensus among "frogs and storks", which could possibly work only to a point).

From my letter to Mitch Stewart of BarakObama.com:

"
I have two questions for you:

1. Is the president going to allow reform without "Public Option"? Not limited one designed to protect the private insurance middle-man that sucks the 30c of every health-care dollar in this country, but the one he promissed - public non-profit option open to all, rich and pure, employed and unemployed and self-employed.

2. Why is the president excluding the Single Payer or the Universal Health-Care advocates from a discussion on Health Care?

The Universal Health Care is a civil right of the 20th Century won by all the industrial nations but US. There is a sleeping giant of support for it, and the legislators, Democrats in particular, are tone deaf not hear it. The president won mandate for it, and I as one of millions of his supporters stand here hesitant for the first time and declare: Yes We Can Mr President, give us a chance, ask us to support true choice and the Universal Health Care for *all* Americans and We Will, but do not ask us to rubber stump your compromises that in the name of consensus compromise on your main Health Care pledge to the people...

"

Posted by Petar Simic on 05/13/2009 @ 07:30AM PT
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Comments on Change.org are meant for further exploration and evaluation of the ideas covered in the posts. To that end, we welcome constructive comments. However, we reserve the right to delete comments that are offensive, abusive, or off-topic; that contain ad hominem attacks; or that are designed to subvert or hijack comment threads rather than contribute to them. Repeat offenders may be permanently removed from the site at our discretion.

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Tim has been an online organizer and blogger on health care policy for the Obama for America campaign (during the primaries) and currently for the Committee of Interns and Residents/SEIU Healthcare, a labor union for intern and resident doctors. Views expressed here are Tim's, and don't represent the positions of CIR or SEIU.