Domestic Weekly Update February 9, 2010
New and Urgent in This Week’s Update
Latest from Washington, DC, and Beyond
Organizational Reminders and Updates
Join National Conference Call THIS Saturday, February 13, 12:30 pm ETJoin the RESULTS’ January domestic monthly conference call this Saturday, February 13, at 12:30 pm ET. We will be discussing how to continue our Health Care for All campaign this year while also ramping up our Economic Opportunity campaign. Our guest speaker will be Monica Mills, director of government relations, Bread for the World. Monica came to Bread for the World in 2006. She has a broad background in public policy and has worked for nongovernmental organizations, political campaigns, and Capitol Hill. At the Peace Corps, she oversaw the recruitment and overseas placement of volunteers. She has worked in senior management for more than 20 years. At Bread for the World, Mills has led their congressional efforts on reforming the Farm Bill and foreign assistance. We look forward to a great call with her. TAKE ACTION: Coordinate and gather with your group this Saturday for the national conference call at 12:30 pm ET. The call-in number is (888) 409-6709. Once connected to the operator, ask for the RESULTS National Conference call. Plan to call in no later than 12:27pm ET to give time to the operator to connect you with the call. Tell Congress that Health Reform and Tax Credits Help the Economy (February Action)Despite massive snow storms in Washington, DC this week, the movement to pass comprehensive health reform is regaining some of its steam. Last week, President Obama reiterated his commitment to passing health reform this year and is even holding a White House Health Summit on February 25 for lawmakers (see below). This is good news to reform supporters, but it is still going to take a strong grassroots push to get it done. House and Senate leaders are still working out how to proceed, but make no mistake, the biggest obstacle to passing health reform is procedure. House and Senate leadership have the tools to get this done. The real obstacle is a fear and lack of will. Many lawmakers do not yet recognize that not passing reform is more perilous — for our country and their re-election — than passing it. Americans are scared and frightened right now, and rightly so. Unemployment is high, wages are falling, and thousands of people are losing their health coverage each day. And effects of the Great Recession are hitting low-income households the hardest. In today’s New York Times, columnist Bob Herbert pens an opinion piece that every lawmaker should read. Herbert notes that while middle-class workers have been hit hard by the economic downturn, low-income workers have been devastated. For example, the jobless rate for people making less than $12,500 per year in the fourth quarter of 2009 was a staggering 30.8 percent. As Herbert concludes, “those in the lower-income groups are in a much, much deeper hole than the general commentary on the recession would lead people to believe. And none of the policy prescriptions being offered by the administration or the leaders of either party in Congress would in any way substantially alleviate the plight of those groups.” As mentioned last week, RESULTS supports efforts at creating jobs, especially for low-income people in the U.S., and one effective way to create jobs is by investing in anti-poverty programs. Investing in programs that help people meet basic needs, like food, shelter or health care, cause positive changes in the local and national economy. Furthermore, Bob Herbert’s piece highlights the absolute importance of our February Action — passing health reform and expansions of low-income tax credits. Health care costs are prohibitively high for low-income Americans and relieving that burden by providing health coverage through Medicaid is a sure pathway to better health and a better life. In addition, expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit, which help supplement low incomes, will help low-income individuals and families stay afloat as the economy recovers and stay out of poverty once it does. Lawmakers must be told the plight of low-income America over and over again. Without a voice for those who are too often ignored, the end of poverty will remain only a dream. Let us help transform that dream into reality. TAKE ACTION: Take the February Action. Write a letter to your representatives and senators urging them to pass health reform and expansions to low-income tax credits in 2010. Remind them that these investments will help millions of individuals and families struggling in poverty, help create jobs, and revive our economy. Find links to learn more about the Earned Income Tax Credit and other low-income tax credits at the RESULTS Economic Opportunity page, including a brief PowerPoint presentation on these issues. We will discuss more about low-income tax credits, including background information for those of us still learning about this issue, on Saturday’s national conference call. Set Up Face-to-Face Meetings During Presidents’ Day Recess; Urge Members to Attend White House Health SummitCongress will be on recess next week, February 15–21 for the Presidents’ Day holiday. This is a great time to set up face-to-face meeting with representatives and senators while they are back home in your states. With health reform unfinished and economic recovery on everyone’s mind, this is an opportune time to let your voice be heard on key issues related to poverty. It is also a great opportunity to tell your member of Congress to attend the White House Health Care Summit on February 25. This weekend, President Obama announced that he would be holding a health care summit after the recess for lawmakers from both parties. The President is hoping to bring ideas from both parties to the meeting so a pathway forward can be forged. Already, Republican lawmakers have indicated that they may refuse to attend if the President does not scrap the current bills and start over; something the White House is so far refusing to do. It is time for politicians from both parties to stop playing politics with people’s lives. The cost of failure is too high. Yesterday we learned that Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield of California, a subsidiary of Wellpoint, one of American’s largest insurance companies, is raising the state’s individual insurance premiums by 39 percent. So while Washington insiders try to figure out the next political move, Americans by the millions suffer. It is time to stop the bickering and do what is right for the American people — pass reform now. TAKE ACTION: Contact the schedulers for your representatives and senators to set up a face-to-face meeting while they are back home. As part of your meetings, tell your members of Congress to attend the White House Health Summit. It is time to stop playing politics with health care and get this done. See our Activist Milestone: Meet Face-to-Face with Your Member of Congress for tips on scheduling and planning your meeting. Also, see our U.S. Poverty Actions and News page to find the February Action sheet and updated laser talks for talking points, as well as a laser talk on setting up a meeting with your member of Congress. You can also use our online alert to help set up your meetings. Be sure to customize your request to the subjects you plan to cover. Once you get a meeting scheduled, please contact Meredith Dodson (dodson@results.org) or Jos Linn (jlinn@results.org) for questions and coaching. Also, Health Care for America Now is organizing health reform rallies for February 17 around the country. If you would like to attend or help organize a rally in your area, go to the HCAN website for details. Attend Helpful Budget and Health Reform Calls This Week and RESULTS Training Calls, Feb. 18 and 23Last week, President Obama’s fiscal year 2011 budget was released, which we reviewed in our February 2 Weekly Update. The update mentioned several training calls being done to explain how the budget affects issues of poverty. Because of bad weather in Washington, DC, the Coalition on Human Needs (CHN) webinar was postponed to this Friday. The webinar, The President’s Budget Explained, is at 2:00 pm ET this Friday, February 12. Register at CHN’s website. Also this Thursday, our friends at Families USA are holding a conference call to discuss how to finish health reform. The call will focus on messaging for “bringing on the Gatorade shower” for reform. Families’ calls are always informative and helpful. This free call is this Thursday, February 11 at 3:00 pm ET; you can register at the Families USA website. Finally, RESULTS will be holding two training calls next week and the week after to help you in your advocacy work. On February 18, RESULTS Domestic Outreach Organizer Jos Linn will be hosting a conference call a tour of the RESULTS website. For those of you still getting used to the new RESULTS website or for people wanting a refresher, this will be a guided tour of key components of this great resource. The call will be Thursday, February 18 at 9:00 pm ET and the call-in number is (712) 432-3100, passcode 761262. Please plan to be in front of your computer with internet access for the call. Then on February 23, we will be hosting an Economic Opportunity campaign conference call. Our two major domestic campaigns for 2010 are Health Care for All (i.e. finishing reform) and Economic Opportunity for All. We recognize that despite your demonstrated expertise on the health care, many of us are not as familiar with the issue of low-income tax credits and asset development. This call is designed to help educate you more about these issues, so you can be better prepared when talking with members of Congress, the media, and your communities. Please plan to join us on Tuesday. February 23 at 8:00 pm ET; the call-in number is (712) 432-3100, passcode 761262. Quick NewsWatch Single-Payer Advocate Margaret Flowers on Bill Moyers’ Journal. On the heels of her arrest 10 days ago for trying to deliver a letter to President Obama in support of Medicare for All, Dr. Margaret Flowers of Physicians for a National Health Program appeared on Bill Moyer’s Journal last Friday to discuss her arrest and her fight for single-payer health care. You can watch the interview online. Dr. Flowers was a guest speaker at the RESULTS International Conference last summer in Washington, DC. RESULTS’ long-term vision is of a national health plan of expanded and improved Medicare for All. Single-payer was ignored during the health reform debate but remains relevant and important to our long-term future. Use our alert to send an e-mail to the White House, asking the president to meet with single-payer representatives. Click on these bill numbers to ask members of Congress to cosponsor H.R.676 and S.703, which RESULTS has endorsed. Feeding America Survey Shows U.S Hunger Is Growing. Last week, Feeding America, the network of over 200 food banks, released Hunger in America 2010, a research study conducted by Mathematica Policy Research. Key findings include. The network serves 37 million people annually, including nearly 14 million children and 3 million seniors. Each week, about 5.7 million people receive emergency food assistance from an agency affiliated with Feeding America. This is a 27 percent increase over 2006. Study Finds Record Rise in Health Care Costs. Last week the non-partisan Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services released a report that shows a historic rise in health care costs. Center for American Progress (CAP) covered the report in its e-letter. Health care spending in the U.S. grew to 17.3 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2009. The report also indicated a marked uptick in government spending on health care — nearly 10 percent for Medicaid and over 8 percent for Medicare — pointing to the “financial cost of the so-called Great Recession and the growing pressure it is putting on state and local governments.” Furthermore, up to one third of health care delivered in the U.S. does not benefit patients. CAP director for health policy Karen Davenport said, “[Health-care reform] encourages providers to deliver high-quality, rather than high-volume, care.” She added, “The underlying trends in our health care system will not change without these reforms.” AnnouncementsGroup Planning Coming Up. Please remember schedule a specific time this month for your group to do annual group planning. You can do it in conjunction with this Saturday’s monthly conference, during your second monthly meeting, or at another time during the month. Also, please go to the RESULTS Group Resources page to find the RESULTS 2010 Group Planning Materials, print off the Individual Planning Form, and complete it before your February group planning meeting. Finally, review the Economic Opportunity PowerPoint Presentation to help you understand the background for our primary 2010 campaign. You can also read more about this campaign on our Economic Opportunity pages. Donations Always Welcome. RESULTS and RESULTS Education Fund always welcome your financial contributions. Your support helps us do the work we do. Use our easy, breezy online donation form to make your contribution. Upcoming Events(Click to see a complete calendar) February 9: President’s Budget Conference Call and Webinar, 2:00 pm ET, presented by Voices for America’s Children. RSVP to novesky@voices.org or register at the Voices website. If your system does not support the webinar software, you can join via conference call only: (866) 519-2800, code 999634. February 11: Families USA on “Messaging for bringing on the Gatorade shower” for health reform, 3:00 pm ET. Register for this free call at the Families USA website. February 12: The President’s Budget Explained Webinar, 2:00 pm ET, presented by the Coalition on Human Needs (CHN). Register at CHN’s website. February 13: RESULTS Domestic National Conference Call, 12:30 pm ET. Guest Speaker: Monica Mills, Director of Government Relations, Bread for the World, (888) 409-6709. February 18: Grassroots Website Tour, 9:00 pm ET. Still trying to figure out the new RESULTS website? Have no fear. Join Domestic Outreach Organizer Jos Linn for a tour of the key sections of the new site. Call (712) 432-3100, passcode 761262 and be sure to be in front of your computer. February 23: Economic Opportunity for All conference call, 8:00 pm ET. This call is designed to help educate you more about low-income tax credits and asset building, so you can be better prepared when talking with members of Congress, the media, and your communities. Call (712) 432-3100, passcode 761262. June 20–22, 2010: RESULTS/RESULTS Educational Fund International Conference, Washington Marriott Hotel, Washington, DC. RESULTS Contact InformationMain Office: (p) (202) 783-7100, (f) (202) 783-2818, 750 First Street NE, Suite 1040, Washington DC 20002. Domestic Legislative and Grassroots Support Staff: Meredith Dodson, x116 (dodson@results.org); Alan Gold, x106 (gold@results.org); Jos Linn, (515) 288-3622 (jlinn@results.org). The RESULTS Domestic Update is sent out every Tuesday over e-mail to RESULTS volunteers and allies all over the country. The purpose of these updates is to inform and activate RESULTS activists to take action on our domestic campaigns. |