The health reform vote is coming in the House. Representative Jim Costa (CA-20) needs to keep listening to us, not the insurance companies.
In Costa’s district, the House’s improvements to the Senate health reform bill will [pdf]:
- Improve coverage for 246,000 residents with health insurance.
- Give tax credits and other assistance to up to 156,000 families and 9,700 small businesses to help them afford coverage.
- Improve Medicare for 62,000 beneficiaries, including closing the donut hole.
- Extend coverage to 138,000 uninsured residents.
- Guarantee that 21,300 residents with pre-existing conditions can obtain coverage.
- Protect 1,200 families from bankruptcy due to unaffordable health care costs.
- Allow 73,000 young adults to obtain coverage on their parents’ insurance plans.
- Provide millions of dollars in new funding for 47 community health centers.
- Reduce the cost of uncompensated care for hospitals and other health care providers by $68 million annually.
A vote for health reform is a vote to stand with these people. A vote against health reform is a vote for the status quo, where insurance companies make record profits by raising rates by double digits (39% in California in the last few months) and dropping millions of customers from their rolls.
The House may vote on health reform as early as this weekend. When the vote comes, Representative Costa has a chance to show us that he’s still on our side.
I’m proud to work for Health Care for America Now