The Big Week
Momentum is building for health care reform in Oregon. Our rally to kickoff our campaign for the Oregon Better Health Act (SB 27) is Wednesday,
March 14th.
The Rally: Nice weather is forecast for Wednesday!
Rally and Press Conference for SB 27 on
Wednesday, March 14, Noon
Join John Kitzhaber and special guests on the steps of the Oregon Capitol. It's our most important event yet, and we're
hoping for a big turnout. We'll
begin to gather at 11:45 AM. Please wear your We Can Do Better t-shirt. We'll
have some on-hand for the early arrivals. The media event will begin at
12:30 PM. For carpool information or to sign up for our charter bus from Portland, contact Matt Webber at 503-709-8574 or matt@wecandobetter.org.
» More
info
The Hearing
Hearing on SB 27 (Oregon Better Health Act), Monday, March 12, 5 PM:
Senate Special Committee on Health Care Reform, Hearing Room 50 of the
Oregon Capitol
Archimedes Movement members have been asking for a hearing on our bill,
the
Oregon Better Health Act. Late last week, the Senate Special Committee
on Health Care Reform scheduled the first hearing on SB 27. That
hearing is
tonight (Monday, March 12).
John Kitzhaber and others have been invited to testify at the hearing
on Monday. We're not sure how much public testimony the committee will
allow, but it would be nice to have you there, wearing your We Can Do
Better t-shirt if you have one.
» More info
NOTE: If you can only go to one of these events, please attend our rally on Wednesday.
The Town Hall Meetings
State Senators Alan Bates & Ben Westlund, co-chairs of the Senate Special Committee on Health Care Reform, are currently touring Oregon together in
support of their health reform bill, SB 329. Their committee is currently considering SB 329 along with other health care proposals, including our
Senate Bill 27
(The
Oregon Better Health Act) and also proposals put forth by the Oregon Health Policy Commission and the Small Business Council. Although they are
touring to talk about their bill (SB 329) they are using this tour to gain insight and views from people across the state and then take all that they
hear back to Salem. While SB 329 and our SB 27 are compatible and could be combined, SB 27 is stronger because it requires Oregon to seek
federal authority to access the public funds currently being spent on health care. That component gets the ball rolling towards a comprehensive and
sustainable health system.
You can read a report from the first of these town hall meetings in this blog
posting by Bruce Mulligan.
Five stops on the tour take place this week (Click for more info):
- Beaverton Library, 6:30 PM, Tuesday, March 13th
- Salem Public Library, 7 PM, Thursday, March 15th
- Portland City Club, Noon, Friday, March 16th
- Lincoln City Community Center, 7 PM, Friday, March 16th
- Portland Community College (SE), 1 PM, Saturday, March
17th
Reading John Kitzhaber's recent letter-to-the-editor might
prove
useful in preparation for these events.
If you would like to receive suggested talking points or discuss why you should attend, then please email or call either Katherine or Matt for more
information:
Katherine: 503-860-5854, katherine@wecandobetter.org
Matt: 503-709-8574, matt@wecandobetter.org
Thanks for your ongoing support. We Can Do Better!
