On July 29, 2017, Kentuckians for Single Payer Health Care rallied with Indivisible and many others at Metro Hall in Louisville to insist that legislators recognize and implement the right of all to health care. KSPH Vice Chair, Edgar Lopez, MD, FACS, and Secretary Harriette Seiler were among the featured speakers. Dr. Lopez, who is bilingual and volunteers many hours at the Free Clinic in Butchertown, is pictured here holding the “Improved-Expanded Medicare for All” sign.
In the days before the rally, the Senate voted narrowly, 51 to 49, against a proposed bill that would have repealed major parts of the Affordable Care Act. That Senate bill would have stripped away coverage for millions according to the Congressional Budget Office.
The threat to take away care has galvanized the single payer movement across the country, as many recognize the precarious nature of the gains made and the problems that continue with 28 million still uninsured and many millions more who have insurance but are still unable to afford medicines and care.
Harriette Seiler, below, a former Canadian, brought the message of what single payer health care has meant to her Canadian family and friends. KSPH activist Antonio Wilson, left, faithfully attends every health care rally. Photos by Holley Holland.
“Today my heart is so full. It was so amazing to witness people from the Kentucky and Indiana side come together in the name of the common good. I’m so proud of us!” That was the feeling of Mary Dunbar, RN, about the July 24, 2017, event “Millions Marching for Medicare for All” that took place on the Big Four Bridge between Louisville and Jeffersonville and in cities across the country.
Mary Dunbar was interviewed by the press at the event. She and Kristi Thomas, activists in Kentuckians for Single Payer Health Care, organized the Kentucky side of the bridgewalk.
Please join us as we celebrate the ‘birthday’ of Medicare!
Sunday, July 30, 2017, 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm
FREE FILM and FREE FOOD.
This is a casual and informative event where you can show your support, ask questions about universal healthcare, watch the film “Fix It: Healthcare at the Tipping Point” and just hang out at the beautiful Tim Faulkner gallery, 1512 Portland Ave. Louisville, KY 40203!
Food and non-alcoholic beverages will be provided, the gallery has a cash bar.
On Monday, June 26, 2017, Karen Armstrong-Cummings of Together Frankfort emceed a rally in the Capitol Rotunda in Frankfort urging calls to Senators Mitch McConnell (202) 224-2541 and Rand Paul (202) 224-4343 to demand hearings on the McConnell bill that would repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. Together Frankfort organized the standing room only rally and Indivisible Bluegrass, Our Revolution Central Kentucky, and Together We Will Bluegrass joined them.
Speakers included Dustin Pugel of the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy; Robin Rider-Osborne, an advocate for those with mental illness and those on Medicaid; Greg Welch of Together We Will Bluegrass; and Coleman Eldridge, former Assistant to former Governor Steve Beshear.
Beshear is nationally acclaimed for assertively implementing the Affordable Care Act in Kentucky, bringing coverage to over half a million people. About 470,000 of those are covered under the expansion of Medicaid. That coverage is now threatened by the Ryan bill that was passed by the House and the McConnell bill that is pending in the Senate.
Kay Tillow of Kentuckians for Single Payer Health Care was the featured presenter. Armstrong-Cummings explained that Together Frankfort did not want only to oppose bills that are harmful but also to project a positive way forward. Hence single payer was right up front at the rally.
The Northern Kentucky Tribune reported:
Kay Tillow, Director of Kentuckians for Single Payer Healthcare, said health care costs in the U. S. are about $10,000 per person annually.
“The health care systems of the other industrialized nations average about $5,000 per capita,” Tillow said. “The tragic story is all those countries with half the money are doing better on outcomes.”
While supportive of the Affordable Care Act, also known as “Obamacare,” the group say they are in favor of a bill sponsored by Rep. John Conyers, D-Michigan, which would establish a nationwide single-payer health care system.
Following the rally the group walked to the Republican headquarters to deliver the message to save healthcare and promote single payer. KSPH Steering Committee member Jill Harmer was among the marchers.
The rotunda statue of Roosevelt’s VP, Alben Barkley of Paducah, sported a single payer, HR 676, Improved Medicare for All sign as well, and Christine Perlin stood by Abraham Lincoln.
Ending the rally, Coleman Eldridge brought the crowd to their feet by asserting that “Health care is a right, not a privilege. This is a matter of moral right and wrong… If we can put a man on the moon, we can ensure that millions of Americans and Kentuckians have access to affordable health care.”
On May 24, 2017, eight current congresspersons participated in the Rep. John Conyers’ press conference to celebrate the 111 cosponsors and the growing public support for HR 676, improved Medicare for All. The 111th cosponsor is Rep. Joe Crowley, NY, Chair of the House Democratic Caucus. There are 193 Democrats in Congress, so the vast majority of them are now supporting this single payer legislation. Before the day was over, Texas Rep. Marc Veasey also signed on, bringing the total to 112.
Congressman Conyers spoke with renewed confidence as he told of the wild popularity of Medicare for All in town hall meetings across the country. “For years people have said, including people who support single payer,that it’s not time yet, that Medicare for All will have to wait,” said Conyers. “Well, Dr. Martin Luther King said that ‘wait’ has almost always meant ‘never.’ We’re here to say that we’re done waiting. It’s time now, Medicare for All,” Conyers stated.
Congresspersons Bonnie Watson Coleman, Ro Khanna, Peter Welch, John Conyers, and Steve Cohen at May 24, 2017 Medicare for All Press Conference
“We will never get universal care building on the foundation of private for-profit insurance. The only way we will get there is the way every other advanced country on the planet has, through a universal system like expanded Medicare for All,” Conyers concluded.
Congressman Jamie Raskin of Maryland told of his very positive experience with the French health care system.
Congressman Ro Khanna of California said that he represents Silicon Valley and that those high tech start ups suffer great pressures to outsource jobs because of the high cost of health care.
Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman of New Jersey said that the 25 best paid hedge fund managers in the U. S. earn, as a collective, 11 billion dollars a year while at the same time over 20 million Americans do not have health care. “I refuse to believe that in this great nation we cannot provide health care for all,” she said.
After reporting massive cheering for Medicare for All in town halls across Wisconsin, Congressman Mark Pocan said, “I recently did a Town Hall in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in Paul Ryan’s district. If the Republicans aren’t going to do Town Halls, we’re going to do Town Halls. And again, in his district, the largest response of the Town Hall was when we get to the subject of Medicare for All. So let’s face it, the people are there, the people are leading.”
Congressman Steve Cohen of Memphis, Tennessee, at HR 676 Press Conference
Congresspersons Steve Cohen of Tennessee, Peter Welch of Vermont, and Keith Ellison of Minnesota also spoke.
National Nurses United CoPresident Jeanne Ross, RN, said “Registered Nurses do not give up on our patients and we will not relent until we win Medicare for All.”
Phil Verhoef, MD, PhD, an ICU physician with Physicians for a National Health Program cited recent research that places the U. S. health system 80th out of 195 countries and by far the worst of the wealthy countries. He declared our system critically ill and said “But we have a solution, we have a therapy for this critically ill patient, our health care system, and that is HR 676, improved and expanded Medicare for All.”
All of the speakers had much more to say. They were passionate and upbeat, sometimes profound and on offense. There is a transcript of their remarks at this website.
Kentuckians for Single Payer Health Care is pleased to announce that discussions of single payer, improved Medicare for All, can be heard on Forward Radio on each Wednesday at 5 pm and Thursday at 9 am at 106.5 FM. The transmitter is atop the Heyburn Building and the station can be heard throughout the city and even further on your car radio.
Forward Radio Schedule. KSPH can be heard at 5 pm on Wednesdays and at 9 am on Thursdays.
FORward Radio is a community-based, low power FM radio start-up and media project operating as an educational arm of the Louisville chapter of the Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR) in pursuit of peace and social justice.
We are grateful to the Fellowship of Reconciliation and to Mark McKinley, KSPH Steering Committee Member, who have struggled over many years to create this new instrument of communication.
If you are interested in telling your health care story on the radio, please contact Mark at markjmckinley@gmail.com.
Harriette Seiler, Tom Moffett, Dr. Barbara Casper, Charlie Casper, Jill Harmer, Dave MacCool, Kay Tillow, Dr. Garrett Adams, are among those who have already been featured on the Single Payer Program.
Judy Tuggle of Mayfield (on the right) at Comer’s Town Hall in Benton, KY
On May 10, 2017, at First District Congressman James Comer’s Town Hall meeting in Benton, Kentucky, Judy Tuggle of Mayfield spoke up for single payer health care.
Judy Tuggle said, “I watched President Trump when the Australian Prime Minister was visiting last week, and I lived in Australia for over a decade. They have cradle to grave, single payer, medicare for all.” (Applause)
“President Trump touched the Australian prime minister on his knee and said “I know you have better health care than we do,” said Tuggle. (Applause)
“When are you and the rest of the 435 people not supporting what works in the rest of the industrialized world… You say you’re pro-business. It handicaps American employers to have to pay for healthcare for the employees. The German employers don’t have to. The English don’t have to. The Australians don’t have to. It handicaps our business people. Single payer works,” said Tuggle.
(Applause)
Rep. James Comer said he was for free enterprise, but if something is not done that is the direction we are headed in. (Loud cheers and applause.)
_________________________________
Jennifer Smith’s speech at Rep. James Comer’s May 10, 2017, Town Hall:
“On March 24, I introduced myself to you, on April 12, I told you about my experience with single payer health care, and why I believe we need HR 676, which would guarantee health care for every American. I had hoped you were listening. You stated your commitment to protecting those of us with pre-existing conditions our access to insurance and health care, but instead, on May 4, you reneged on that promise, and voted for the horrendous bill, the AHCA.
Jennifer Smith at Rep. James Comer’s Town Hall in Benton, KY, on May 10, 2017
“In response to the outrage from your constituents, you stated on your Facebook page that the bill protected pre-existing conditions, and that those protesting and distorting the truth were far left liberals like the DNC, and Planned Parenthood. You either lied, or in trying to give you the benefit of the doubt, you are naive and have been grossly misled by your friends in Washington.
“I am a two time breast cancer survivor. I am a mother, and a grandmother. I am not being paid by any organization to be here. I am a pre-existing condition that disagrees with your vote, as the AHCA will probably be the death of me.
“The radical left wing organizations that you say are against you include the American Cancer Society, Komen, the National Patient Advocate Foundation, and over 25 other cancer and health advocacy groups. The American Medical Association, the American Nurses Association, the American Hospital Association, and AARP have also come out strongly against the bill. All of the organizations have cited the catastrophic impact this will have on those of us with pre-existing conditions, and every other consumer of health care.
“You attempt to distort the impact of the bill, by saying that the high risk pools will protect us. That would have some truth, if the funding in the bill was anywhere near what would be required to have the high risk pools be functional. The funding would only cover approximately 110,000 individuals with pre-existing conditions. However, there are an estimated 2.1 million people in this country with pre-existing conditions, so what happens to us?
“You also neglect to mention that with the states right to opt out, that it is almost a certainty that Kentucky’s governor Bevin would take that option, just as Wisconsin’s Governor Walker has already stated his intent.
“The reality is that this bill with drive up costs for the poor and those with health issues to the point that there is no access, because we will not be able to afford to pay the premiums or out of pocket expenses. This is a simple grammar lesson, just because we may buy health insurance doesn’t mean we can.
“The AHCA repeals the protections of the ACA. Insurance no longer is required to cover:
Ambulatory care or outpatient care.
Hospitalization
Mental health or substance abuse
prescriptions
rehab for injuries, disabilities, chronic mental or physical deficits.
Preventative screenings like mammograms or colonoscopies.
Maternity and newborn care,
Laboratory
Emergency.
“It also reduces payments for medicaid patient’s home health attendants.
“Many of these costs currently covered by insurance will now be out of pocket, and will certainly result in more bankruptcies, and in some cases, death, as people will skip getting their preventative screenings and care.
“The CBO has stated that with this bill, 14 million people will become uninsured, and that by 2026, 52 million people will be uninsured.
“All of this so that the wealthy can get tax cuts, when history proves that these tax cuts balloon the deficit. The estimate attached to the tax cuts in this bill are that the deficit will be 111 % of the GDP by 2027.
“At the meeting in Cadiz, you stated that perhaps we had to consider that we could not as a country provide what was needed for our citizens, and turn to churches and charities to provide these services. When I was diagnosed for second time in 2015, my bill at Vanderbilt was almost $600,000 by the end of my chemotherapy and surgeries. I had a Go Fund Me page, but what was interesting to me is that it was not people of wealth donating, but my friends who had also had cancer and were almost as financially challenged as we were. I can assure you, Go Fund Me is not a health care provider!”
The crowd applauded Jennifer.
Others spoke as well, many concerned about health care. The public radio report is here.
A short video from the Courier-Journal about Louisville’s April 8, 2017, Town Hall for HR 676, Improved Medicare for All. http://cjky.it/2nWvU1i
Town hall champions single-payer health care
Darla Carter , @PrimeDarla April 8, 2017, Courier-Journal
Exorbitant prescription costs, high deductibles and having to jump through hoops to get procedures covered.
Those were among the realities of today’s insurance landscape highlighted Saturday at a sidewalk town hall in downtown Louisville.
Dozens of people gathered outside U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell’s office to show their support for single-payer national health insurance, which is sometimes referred to as “Medicare for all.”
A new system is needed because “we’re fed up. Enough is enough,” said Dr. Garrett Adams, a former Louisville pediatrician who served as president of Physicians for a National Health Program. “We’re sick and tired of our lives being run by greedy profiteers,” such as “the health insurance industry, for-profit hospitals, Big Pharma and medical device companies. It doesn’t have to be that way.”
About a dozen speakers, including U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth, state Rep. Jim Wayne and Louisville physician Barbara Casper, spoke as a crowd held up signs emblazoned with statements like “Patients not profits” and “Hey, Mitch. Healthcare for all is a right!”
“It is shame to live in a country where people are expendable like pawns on a chessboard, a chessboard built for profiteers,” the Rev. Ron Robinson told the crowd. “It is a shame to live in a country where people have to use the emergency rooms as their primary care doctor. …Somehow, we need to raise our consciousness to a higher level and take back what is taken away from us.”
Similar events were held around the country to focus attention on U.S. Rep. John Conyers’ HR 676 Medicare for All bill, which the Michigan Democrat has introduced in Congress since 2003.
“This is an historic day,” Adams said. “All across the country we are demanding a health-care system that works for all of us.”
The national day of action was organized by Physicians for a National Health Program and several other organizations.
Support for single payer “is really growing,” said Kay Tillow, chairperson of Kentuckians for Single Payer Healthcare, a co-sponsor of the sidewalk town hall. Conyers’ plan “really would work to cover everyone, to rein in the costs” and , cover “everything medically necessary,” from eyeglasses and hearing aids to long-term care.
While some strides have been made due to the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, the nation needs a plan that would cover everyone and stop profit-making entities from siphoning funds that are needed for care, Tillow said.
“We are not doing a good job…so we are appealing to everyone to rise up and make this politically possible by seeing your Congress persons and contacting and talking to them,” she said. “ … We are seeking to appeal to McConnell and the entire Congress.”
The national day of action is being organized by Physicians for a National Health Program and several other organizations.
In a recent piece in the Detroit Free Press, Conyers argued that the time is ripe to support single payer now that a major effort to replace and repeal the Affordable Care Act has failed.
Conyers wrote, “Time and time again I’ve heard Democrats dodge questions about their support for universal healthcare by saying they’re focused right now on defending the ACA. Now that we have repelled Paul Ryan’s attack and Donald Trump has signaled that Republications will move on, the time for those excuses has passed.”
He went on to say, “I want my colleagues to join me in supporting single-payer not to save money or to win elections, but because it is the moral and just thing to do, if, like me, you believe health care is a right to everyone and not a privilege to those who can afford it.”
Reporter Darla Carter can be reached at (502) 582-7068 or dcarter@courier-journal.com.
In front of Sen. Mitch McConnell’s office, 601 W. Broadway, Louisville, KY
Saturday, April 8, 2017, 10:30 -11:30 am
Please join us to talk about the real solution to our nation’s health care problems.
The Senator has been invited.
Forward to Single Payer, Improved Medicare-for-All, HR 676
Speakers:
Barbara Casper, MD, Professor of Medicine
Ann Hagan-Grigsby, MBA, CEO, Park DuValle Community Health Center
Congressman John Yarmuth, 3rd CD, Kentucky
Devin McBride, Medical Student, Students for a National Health Program (SNaHP)
Jim Wayne, Kentucky State Representative, 35th District
Barbara Boyd, Chair, Kentucky Alliance against Racist and Political Repression
Professor Tom Lambert, Chair, Business Dept., Simmons College & Economics Dept., Univ. of Louisville
Garrett Adams, MD, Past President, Physicians for a National Health Program
The Rev. Ron Robinson
Tim Morris, Political Director, Greater Louisville Central Labor Council
James Moore, Small Business Owner
Carol Paris, MD, President, Physicians for a National Health Program
This is a part of nationwide events on this date designed to place the solution to the healthcare crisis, national single payer legislation, Expanded and Improved Medicare for All, HR 676, on the nation’s agenda. The bill, introduced by Congressman John Conyers currently has 84 cosponsors. The bill and the cosponsors are here.
Sponsors:
Kentuckians for Single Payer Health Care kyhealthcare.org
Kentucky Chapter of Physicians for a National Health Program pnhp.org
U of L Chapter, Students for a National Health Program (SNaHP)
speakers. Dr. Lopez, who is bilingual and volunteers many hours at the Free Clinic in Butchertown, is pictured here holding the “Improved-Expanded Medicare for All” sign.
ould have stripped away coverage for millions according to the Congressional Budget Office.
h care rally. Photos by Holley Holland.
