The members of the Pennsylvanian’s United for Affordable Health Care and the Pennsylvania Health Access Network met with policy staff of the Rendell Administration and the policy chair of the Democratic caucus, Todd Eachus last week. From what we heard, the administration and the caucus are working together to forge a bill to extend health insurance to most of those with out it. The bill has a chance of being passed by the House of Representatives this year—that’s right, before the session ends on December 19.

What that bill will look like in detail is still up in the air. In broad outline in will follow the Cover All Pennsylvanian’s part of Governor Rendell’s Prescription for Pennsylvania. (Another part of the RxPA, which will regulate the insurance industry so as to reduce inflation in health care costs, is in HB 2005, which was recently passed by the Insurance Committee of the House of House Representatives.) You can find out details about RxPA at my blog.

We won’t see the bill for another next seven to ten days. But we expect it to be, at the very least, good enough for progressives to support. Indeed, with between 700,000 and 1.2 million people in this state without health insurance—and hundreds of thousands more who may lose their insurance do to rising costs—any bill that insures most of the uninsured, and keeps health care costs under control, deserves our support.

So now is that time for you to act. Deal-making in Harrisburg won’t bring us the result we want, if our legislators don’t understand that people care about this issue. So tell your state representative that Pennsylvanians need a holiday present, health care reform that meets the
following criteria:

1. Covers all Pennsylvanians
2. Ensures a quality, affordable health insurance product
3. Controls health care costs and premiums
4. Ensures that everyone contributes to the cost of health care

You can use the SEIU State Council website to directly contact your state legislator.

It takes about fifteen seconds to contact your legislator. Please, do this right now!

It is not just about health care for Pennsylvanians. Health care is the domestic issue that should dominate the presidential and congressional election debates next year if we want to elect a Democratic President and expand our majorities in Congress. What we do in Pennsylvania in
the next two weeks will determine if that occurs.

Marc Stier
SEIU PA State Council
Health Care Campaign Manager