It was expected that the Weiner Amendment would get a vote today, but Representative Weiner has withdrawn it:
Washington, DC – Today, Representative Anthony Weiner (D - Brooklyn and Queens), a member of the House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee, released the following statement on his decision to withdraw his single payer amendment to H.R. 3962, the House health care reform bill:
"I have decided not to offer a single payer alternative to the health reform bill at this time. Given how fluid the negotiations are on the final push to get comprehensive health care reform that covers millions of Americans and contains costs through a public option, I became concerned that my amendment might undermine that important goal."
"I am going to continue to press the case for health care reform in every venue I can. And I also will continue to press for a smarter, less-expensive, more-comprehensive alternative to the employer-based health insurance system we have today."
"I've discussed the issue with Speaker Pelosi, Chairman Waxman, and agree with them that the health reform bill is so close it deserves every chance to gain a majority."
### Source
Last Night, Representatives Dennis Kucinich and John Conyers, Sponsors of HR-676, the Single-Payer bill that Weiner's amendment was about, posted statements on several blogs and news sites warning about this vote because they feared it would not get the votes needed in the current political landscape and could harm future reform actions by setting a low benchmark.
Tomorrow, the House of Representatives is scheduled to consider a single payer bill. As the two principal co-authors of the Conyers single payer bill, we want to offer a strong note of caution about tomorrow's vote.
The bill presented tomorrow will not be HR676. While we are happy to relinquish authorship of a single payer bill to any member who can do better, we do not want a weak bill brought forward in a hostile climate to unwittingly accomplish what would be interpreted as a defeat for single payer.
Here are the facts: There has been no debate in Congress over HR676. There has not been a single mark-up of the bill. Single payer was "taken off the table" for the entire year by the White House and by congressional leaders. There has been no reasonable period of time to gather support in the Congress for single payer. Many members accepted a "robust public option" as the alternative to single payer and now that has disappeared. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has scored the bill scheduled for a vote tomorrow in a manner which is at odds with many credible assumptions, meaning that it will appear to cost way too much even though we know that true single payer saves money since one of every three dollars in the health care system goes to administrative costs caused by the insurance companies. Is this really the climate in which we want a test vote?
While state single payer movements are already strong, the national single payer movement is still growing. Many progressives in Congress, ourselves included, feel that calling for a vote tomorrow for single payer would be tantamount to driving the movement over a cliff. The thrill of the vote would disappear quickly when the result would be characterized not as a new beginning for single payer but as an end. Such a result would be seen as proof that Congress need not pay attention to efforts to restore in Conference Committee the right of states to pursue single payer without fear of legal attacks by insurance companies.
We are always grateful for your support. We are now asking you to join us in suggesting to congressional leaders that this is not the right time to call the roll on a stand-alone single payer bill. That time will come. And when it does there will not be any doubt of the outcome. This system of health care injustice will not be able to endure forever. We are pledged to make sure of that.
Sincerely,
Congressmen John Conyers and Dennis Kucinich
So... we live to fight another day.
Seven Members of Congress have now signed a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi requesting that Democratic Leadership restore the Kucinich Amendment to the health care reform bill before bringing the bill for a vote.
Added to H.R. 3200 in the Education and Labor Committee, the Kucinich Amendment removes an obstacle for states that seek to enact a statewide single payer health care system.
In addition to Congressman Kucinich (D-OH), Representatives John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI), Eric Massa (D-NY), Neil Abercrombie (D-HI), Janice D. Schakowsky (D-IL) Lynn C. Woolsey (D-CA), Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) have signed the letter.
The full text of the letter follows:
October 30, 2009
The Honorable Nancy Pelosi
Speaker of the House
U.S. House of Representatives
H-232 The Capitol
Washington, D.C. 20515-0001
Dear Madam Speaker,
We write to request that the Kucinich amendment that would grant a waiver of the application of ERISA to a state single payer plan be included in the Manager’s amendment to H.R. 3962.
Like many other important reforms included in the underlying bill, the Kucinich amendment is the object of attack by the insurance industry. Unlike other reform measures, Leadership has chosen to strip the Kucinich amendment of the protection it deserves. In view of the power of the insurance industry to divide and conquer good ideas for reforming health insurance in this country, we believe that a simple vote on the floor would be a setback for the amendment and for single payer health care, because it would be exposed to the full brunt of the insurance industry’s attacks.
Progressives are firm and emphatic in their support for the single payer health care. A single payer, Medicare for All health system is the best way to control costs, drive up quality and extend care to all. Allowing states to opt for a single payer plan is a compromise. It is an incremental reform. But it allows the country to move incrementally in the direction that is needed.
The Kucinich amendment strikes a balance between where we need to go and where we can go in the next week. We urge you to include it in the Manager’s amendment.
John Conyers and some allies on the House Judiciary Committee have come up with a fabulous way to get the insurance industry in line - by threatening to remove their anti-trust exemption.
Many people don't know that the insurance industry, under the McCarran-Ferguson Act of 1945, has a broad anti-trust exemption that facilitates regional monopolies. The Act allows states to regulate the insurance business instead of the federal government, but also allows that, as long as the state regulates the industry, federal anti-trust laws would not apply. The point is that the concentration of the health insurance market among regional monopolies leads to higher costs for consumers, almost by definition. What the legislation by Conyers (D-MI), Hank Johnson (D-GA) and Diana DeGette (D-CO) would do is end that anti-trust exemption for health insurers, allowing for enforcement in all of these highly concentrated markets. The Senate has companion legislation from Sen. Patrick Leahy Read it all at Daily Kos
Four central labor councils in Tennessee, Texas and Minnesota have endorsed HR 676, single payer healthcare legislation introduced by Congressman John Conyers (D-MI).
One hundred and thirty four central labor councils and area labor federations have now endorsed HR-676 - Expanded and Improved Medicare For All
In Tennessee, the Central Labor Council of Nashville and Middle Tennessee has endorsed H.R.-676, reports Council President Lewis Beck.
In Texas, the Tarrant County Central Labor Council in North Richland Hills and the Webb County Central Labor Council in Laredo also endorsed HR-676. William Koehn, President of the Webb County Central Labor Council, reports that UTU Local 1670, his own local union, has also endorsed HR-676.
In Minneapolis, Minnesota, the Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation endorsed HR-676 and submitted its resolution to the AFL-CIO Convention.
Both Texas labor councils have also submitted their resolutions to the AFL-CIO Convention.
In the current Congress, HR 676 has 86 co-sponsors in addition to Conyers.
Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders has introduced SB 703, a single payer bill in the Senate.
HR-676 has been endorsed by 566 union organizations in 49 states including 134 Central Labor Councils and Area Labor Federations and 39 state AFL-CIO's (KY, PA, CT, OH, DE, ND, WA, SC, WY, VT, FL, WI, WV, SD, NC, MO, MN, ME, AR, MD-DC, TX, IA, AZ, TN, OR, GA, OK, KS, CO, IN, AL, CA, AK, MI, MT, NE, NY, NV & MA).
For more information contact:
Kay Tillow
All Unions Committee For Single Payer Health Care--HR 676
c/o Nurses Professional Organization (NPO)
1169 Eastern Parkway, Suite 2218
Louisville, KY 40217
(502) 636 1551
Email: nursenpo@aol.com
http://unionsforsinglepayerHR676.org
On the same day President Barack Obama held a teleconference with Congressional members comprised of the Progressive, Black, Asian Pacific American and Hispanic Caucuses, a long time influential Democrat in Congress, John Conyers of Detroit, said he will not back the current House health care bill that passed the House Energy and Commerce Committee in July, by a narrow 26 – 22 vote, unless the public option component is strengthened.
“I don’t see anything to brag about,” he told me in an interview that will air on Pacifica Radio’s national show Letters to Washington on September 8th. Read it all at News Junkie Post
Since May 20 seven more US Representatives have signed on to HR 676, national single payer health care sponsored by Congressman John Conyers (D-MI), bringing the total, including Conyers, to 83.
Congressman Conyers was able to get the first official single payer congressional hearing in decades. It took place in a House subcommittee on June 10, 2009.
The witnesses included Congressman Conyers, Chair of the Judiciary Committee and chief sponsor of HR 676; Marcia Angell MD, former Editor of the New England Journal of Medicine; Walter Tsou MD, National Board Advisor of PNHP; and Geri Jenkins, Co-President of the CNA/NNOC, plus David Gratzer of The Manhattan Institute who testified against single payer.
Don't miss the questioning by Representatives Phil Hare and Dennis Kucinich.
CSPAN video with transcript:
http://www.c-spanarchives.org/
- Conyers at 7:50
- Jenkins at 22:37
- Tsou at 29:15
- Angell at 40:24
- Hare at 1:11:16
- Kucinich at 1:19:32
Congressman Conyers is requesting that there be single payer hearings in every House committee with jurisdiction over health care prior to deciding on health care reform so that the most popular plan can be fully heard and considered. Call or fax Committee Chairmen Rangel and Waxman to urge them to hold hearings on single payer health care. If your congressperson is on either committee, you can encourage him or her to speak to the Chairmen in favor of single payer hearings. Rep. Charles Rangel, Chair of Ways and Means, Ph: (202) 225-3625; Fax: (202) 225-2610 Ways and Means Members here: http://waysandmeans.house.gov/members.asp?cong=19Rep. Henry Waxman, Chair of Energy and Commerce (202) 225-2927 Energy and Commerce Members here: http://energycommerce.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=160&Itemid=61
Conyers spoke last night on Capitol Hill at a dinner in honor of outgoing Public Citizen President Joan Claybrook.
“There are three committees that have been designated to work on (health care) on the House side,” Conyers said. “[They are headed by] three dear buddies of mine – Charlie Rangel, Henry Waxman and George Miller. Guess what? All of them were on single payer (HR 676).”
“Guess what? All of them got off except for George Miller of California. Not only did he not get off, he said — you want a hearing, you got a hearing.”
“It’s one thing to go down in defeat, which I don’t plan to do by the way,” Conyers said. “But it’s another thing to say – we don’t want to hear the most popular bill. I’ve got 79 co-sponsors. Seventy-nine men and women saying – let’s get this thing on. We’ve got 300 to 400 unions. We’ve had three polls. The American people have spoken.”
“And here I am in the most Democratically controlled legislature in my life. And they are saying – it’s kind of too late because we have to get this thing through by the end of July. And we don’t have time.”
“Hey look – I’ve worked on this too damn long to let anybody – I’m going to every Committee not just Miller’s. Charlie Rangel – get ready for your pal to come to your Committee.”
“Henry Waxman, my brilliant friend, open up your door. And then if you want to try to pull something that’s okay. But to tell me it’s too late – I’ve got news for you. That means you really didn’t know me all of these years.”
“We’re going to have HR 676 heard in every committee of the House of Representatives or my name ain’t John Conyers.”
“I don’t mind losing a debate or losing the vote, but Jesus Christ don’t tell me that my proposal is off the table before we start, without even a hearing,” Conyers said.
“What kind of a Democratic congress is this?” he asked.
Conyers also gave the back of his hand to President Obama.
“I’ve finally persuaded my favorite president in life to – not put single payer on the table – but to at least let me in the room,” Conyers said. “That was a great complement I suppose.”
“How are you going to have a transformational health care program that has been vaunted and touted for so long if you take the most popular remedy for it off the table to begin the negotiations?” Conyers asked. “You won’t get it.”
“The reason is elementary Dear Watson,” Conyers said. “The corporate health care people, the insurance people don’t want to leave the room. And they are not leaving the room. And as long as they are there, you are going to have some sad version of the same crap you were supposed to be fixing in the first place.”
(Listen to audio of Conyers’ remarks here. - mp3)
More at Single Payer Action
by Chuck Idelson | Guaranteed Healthcare
In Canada, it took the dogged determination of one province, Saskatchewan, and a visionary leader Tommy Douglas, to pave the path to a national health care system, which they call Medicare.
For all the detractors of the Canadian system in the studios of Fox News and the board rooms of rightwing think tanks, consider this one note: In 2004, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation conducted a national poll to select the greatest Canadian of all time. The winner in a landslide -- Tommy Douglas.
While the federal window remains open for reform, with two national single payer bills, John Conyers' HR 676 in the House and now Bernie Sanders' S 703 in the Senate, many nurses, doctors, and health activists are turning to the states to lead as well. More than a half dozen U.S. states now are considering legislation to establish single payer systems, essentially an expanded and updated form of the U.S. Medicare system to cover everyone in their states. Here's a roundup of some of the state bills:
California
The latest bill SB 810 passed its first legislative test Wednesday in the Senate Health Committee on a party line 7-4 vote before a room packed with nurses, doctors, medical students, California School Employees Association members, and healthcare activists.
In her lead testimony, Malinda Markowitz, RN, co-president of the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee noted that "nurses know insurance companies don't provide any value whatsoever in the delivery of medicine. Under SB 810, we would be free of their interference, their denial of care, their massive bureaucracy, and their waste of healthcare dollars."
UC Irvine medical student Parker Duncan said that he did not want to “be in a world not doing what I was trained to do,” referring to the paperwork that is one of the expensive burdens that undermine the ability of the current system to deliver health care.
Twice this decade California's legislature passed earlier versions of SB 810 (SB 840 carried by now retired Sen. Sheila Kuehl), but the bills were vetoed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. State activists say they will continue to push single payer in California, even if they need to wait until the next governor, who won't be Schwarzenegger, is elected in 2010.
Colorado
House Bill 1273 by Fort Collins Democrat John Kefalas, passed its first vote in the state House April 6. The bill sets up a 23-member commission to design a universal health-insurance system.
"Our current health-care system is not well," Kefalas said. "Our current health-care system is unsustainable, with the cost of health care and the numbers of the uninsured rising dramatically."
Press reports note a state Blue Ribbon Commission on Health Care Reform two years ago studied single payer and found it was the only approach that saved money compared to what Coloradans now spent on healthcare.
Illinois
HB 311, the Healthcare for All Illinois Act, sponsored by Rep. Mary Flowers, had its first hearing in March. Though no votes have been taken yet, the new Gov. Pat Quinn is a long time supporter of single payer reform.
At an introductory press conference, Brenda Langford, Cook County RN, said that “Illinois can once again be a symbol of hope and progress for our nation. Nurses are tired of watching our patients suffer from denial of care and lack of access to coverage. We see far too much of this at Cook County hospitals—and that’s why we support guaranteed healthcare through a single-payer system.”
Maine
LD 1365, sponsored by Brunswick Rep. Charles Priest, and co-sponsored from legislators from all over the state, had its first hearing April 13.
The hearing came just days after both houses of the Maine legislature passed resolutions calling on President Obama and Congress to enact federal single payer legislation. A poll this winter showed 52 percent of Maine physicians also favor single payer.
As Cathy Herlihy of the Maine State Nurses Association put it in a state forum featuring U.S. Senator Olympia Snowe, a single-payer system is the “the only solution,” she said. “We do not have time to wait. Our health should not be sacrificed for limited reforms.”.
Pennsylvania
Two single payer bills are alive in the state, House Bill 1660, the “Family and Business Healthcare Security Act of 2009,” and Senate Bill 300.
Gov. Ed Rendell has said that if a single payer bill were to make it to his desk, he will sign it, reports Chuck Pennachio of Health Care for All Pennsylvania.
The state Democratic House Caucus is holding a public forum on the bill Friday, April 17 at 10 a.m. at the University of Pennsylvania campus in Philadelphia, featuring speakers from Physicians for a National Health Program, the Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals, and other single payer supporters..
The hearing comes on the heels of a resolution passed by the Philadelphia City Council calling for both state and federal lawmakers to establish a single-payer health system.
Other states
Single payer bills are also on the docket in Minnesota, Missouri, and Washington.
|
