Just say YES to health reform

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Consumer Action joins hundreds of national organizations, representing health care consumers, seniors, unions, faith groups, communities of color, and many other constituencies to urge Congress to Vote "Yes" on health reform—because the cost of doing nothing is much too high. The following is a national, two-page ad that appeared in influential Congressional publications on March 17. Click here to make a call to your representatives.

• Ending enormous premium increases – like the huge increases recently announced in many states
• Banning denials of coverage to children and adults with pre-existing conditions
• Restricting insurance company practices that charge higher premiums based on gender and age
• Helping small businesses so they can afford to provide decent health coverage for their workers
• Curbing health care costs so businesses can grow and provide better wages for their workers
• Preventing families from going into debt or bankruptcy when they need health care
• Covering more than 30 million people who don’t have health coverage now
• Closing the “doughnut hole” so Medicare enrollees won’t fall into the Medicare drug coverage gap any more
• Cutting the federal deficit by more than $100 billion over the next ten years and by many hundreds of billions of dollars in the following decade

Vote Yes because the cost of doing nothing is much too high!

AIDS Action Council Alliance for Children and Families Alliance for Retired Americans Alzheimer's Foundation of America American Academy of Family Physicians American Academy of Pediatrics American Academy of Physician Assistants American Association for Cancer Research American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging American Association of Pastoral Counselors American Association of People with Disabilities American Association on Health and Disability American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) American College of Nurse Midwives American College of Physicians American Counseling Association American Diabetes Association American Federation of Government Employees American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) American Federation of Television and Radio Artists American Friends Service Committee American Group Psychotherapy Association American Heart Association American Hospice Foundation American Library Association American Mental Health Counselors Association American Music Therapy Association American Network of Community Options and Resources American Nurses Association American Psychiatric Nurses Association American Psychological Association American Public Health Association American Social Health Association Americans for Democratic Action Anxiety Disorders Association of America Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum Asian American Justice Center Association for Ambulatory Behavioral Healthcare Association for Clinical Pastoral Education Association for the Advancement of Psychology Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations Association of Assistive Technology Act Programs Association of Community Affiliated Plans Association of Hispanic Healthcare Executives Association of University Centers on Disabilities Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America Autism Society of America Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law Black Women's Health Imperative B'nai B'rith International Brain Injury Association of America Breast Cancer Network of Strength California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) Catholic Health Association of the United States Center for Adolescent Health & the Law Center for Medicare Advocacy, Inc. Center for Rural Affairs Center for the Study of the American Electorate CenterLink: The Community of LGBT Centers Change That Works Child Welfare League of America Children's Defense Fund Clergy Strategic Alliances, LLC Clinical Social Work Association Coalition on Human Needs Colon Cancer Alliance Common Cause CommonHealth ACTION Communities Advocating Emergency AIDS Relief Coalition Community Action Partnership Community Catalyst Community Transportation Association of America Consumer Action Consumer Federation of America Consumers' CHECKBOOK/Center for the Study of Services Consumers Union Corporation for Supportive Housing Defeat Diabetes Foundation Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund Disciples Justice Action Network Doctors for America Easter Seals Eastern Diocese of the Armenian Church Eating Disorders Coalition Epilepsy Foundation Evangelicals for Social Action Every Child Matters Education Fund Faithful America Faithful Reform in Health Care Families USA Family Equality Council Family Violence Prevention Fund Family Voices Federation of American Hospitals First Focus Campaign for Children Friends Committee on National Legislation Friends Fiduciary Corporation Generations United Health Care For All Health Care for America Now Healthcare Access Project HealthHIV Hispanic Dental Association HIV Medicine Association Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW) Japanese American Citizens League Jewish Reconstructionist Federation League of Women Voters of the United States Legal Momentum LIVESTRONG Malecare Prostate Cancer Support Medicare Rights Center Mental Health America MomsRising NAACP National Academies of Practice National Alliance for Caregiving National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors National Alliance on Mental Illness National Association for Children’s Behavioral Health National Association of Area Agencies on Aging National Association of Community Health Centers National Association of County Behavioral Health and Developmental Disability Directors National Association of Hispanic Nurses National Association of Human Rights Workers National Association of Jewish Chaplains National Association of Mental Health Planning and Advisory Councils National Association of Neighborhoods National Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems National Association of Social Workers National Association of State Head Injury Administrators National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors National Black Leadership Initiative on Cancer III, Community Networks Program National Breast Cancer Coalition National Center on Caregiving, Family Caregiver Alliance National Cervical Cancer Coalition National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship National Coalition for LGBT Health National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs National Coalition of Mental Health Consumer/Survivor Organizations National Coalition on Health Care Action Fund National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare National Congress of American Indians National Congress of Black Women, Inc. National Consumers League National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare National Council of Asian & Pacific Islander Physicians National Council of Churches, USA Health Task Force National Council of Negro Women, Inc. National Council of Urban Indian Health National Council on Aging National Disability Rights Network National Down Syndrome Congress National Education Association National Family Caregivers Association National Federation of Families for Children's Mental Health National Forum for Latino Healthcare Executives National Foundation for Mental Health National Gay and Lesbian Task Force National Health Equity Coalition National Health Law Program National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators National Hispanic Council on Aging National Hispanic Medical Association National Indian Health Board National Legal Aid and Defender Association National Lung Cancer Partnership National Medical Association National Multiple Sclerosis Society National Native American AIDS Prevention Center National Partnership for Women & Families National Patient Advocate Foundation National Physicians Alliance National Policy and Advocacy Council on Homelessness National Public Sector HealthCare Roundtable National Research Center for Women & Families National Resource Center for Hispanic Mental Health National Respite Coalition National Senior Citizens Law Center National Spinal Cord Injury Association National Women's Law Center NCCNHR: The National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care NETWORK, A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby Nurse-Family Partnership National Service Office OCA Opinion Leaders Advocacy Network Our Bodies Ourselves Out of Many, One OWL - The Voice of Midlife and Older Women Paralyzed Veterans of America Partnership for Prevention PHI - Health Care for Health Care Workers Physicians for Reproductive Choice and Health Prescription Policy Choices Progressive States Network Project Inform Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities Coalition RESULTS Ryan White Medical Providers Coalition Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law Self-Governance Communication and Education Tribal Consortium Service Employees International Union Sisters of Mercy of the Americas Institute Justice Team Small Business Majority Society for Adolescent Medicine SparkLight Communications State Legislators for Health Care Reform Summit Health Institute for Research and Education, Inc. The Access Project The AIDS Institute The Arc of the United States The Center for Health Care Policy Research and Analysis The Children's Partnership The Healing of the Nations Foundation The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights (LCCR) The LGBT Cancer Project - Out With Cancer The Main Street Alliance The Shomer Shalom Network for Jewish Nonviolence Therapeutic Communities of America Tourette Syndrome Association U.S. PIRG (Public Interest Research Group) U.S. Positive Women's Network Union for Reform Judaism Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations United Cerebral Palsy United Food and Commercial Workers International Union United Methodist Church - General Board of Church and Society United Neighborhood Centers of America United Spinal Association Universal Health Care Action Network (UHCAN) Us TOO International Prostate Cancer Education & Support Network USAction VetsFirst Voices for America's Children Volunteers of America Wider Opportunities for Women Witness Justice Women of Reform Judaism Women Together for Change