Resolution and Manifesto on a Public Option by GrassRoots Activists

WE, THE UNDERSIGNED GRASSROOTS ACTIVISTS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS DECLARE AND DEMAND THAT,

WHEREAS, the for-profit health care system is the costliest, most inefficient and most unjust in the coverage, treatment and delivery of medical care and procedures found anywhere; and

WHEREAS, the only bottom line in the for-profit health care system, is to have the highest margin between earnings from premiums and co-payments vs. costs for medical services and procedures; and

WHEREAS, the only existing mechanisms for-profit health care providers to achieve the highest margin between profits vs. costs of medical services and procedures, are to raise premiums, raise co-payments,  increase service fees for reductions paid by Medicare, increase the number of unnecessary or redundant services causing over one third of waste and increased overall costs for healthcare delivery, increase denials of payments for medical services and, or, purge policyholders whose claims have risen in cost; and

WHEREAS, a common mechanism of the for-profit health care system is to deny payment for medical treatments or procedures by carefully examining the patient's medical history seeking previously existing conditions; and

WHEREAS, the uniformity in insurance policy contracts in the for-profit health care system functions as a de facto monopoly where individuals who have pre-existing conditions face universal denials; and

WHEREAS, the toll of human misery, pain, death and catastrophic economic hardship continues to rise, while according to Harper's Index (September 2009), the percentage increase since 2002 in average premiums paid to large US health-insurance companies is 87% and the percentage increase in profits of the top ten insurance companies was 428%, while the chance that Americans bankrupted by medical bills have health insurance is 7 in 10; and

WHEREAS, even accounting for the difficulty in quantifying the number of people who have lost insurance coverage and died because of it, the most widely accepted estimates suggest that since spring 2007, 3.5 million Americans have lost their health benefits, approximately 14,000 people a day lose their health coverage and 2,220 Americans have died due to the lack of health benefits since the Obama Administration took office; and

WHEREAS, US healthcare spending has exceeded the rate of inflation to become the largest sector of the US economy and the United States spends over 16% of its GDP on healthcare, an amount almost double the average for developed nations; and

WHEREAS, studies clearly show substantial cost savings will result from the implementation of a not-for-profit health delivery plan and that savings under a single-player plan will be substantially higher than with the insertion of a public option into a hybrid health care reform plan; and

WHEREAS, 45% - 60% of doctors favor single-payer and 40% - 62% of the American people, including 80% of registered Democrats, want universal, single-payer, not-for-profit health care for all Americans; and

WHEREAS, the not-for-profit health care system routinely outperforms the for-profit health care system in all categories pertaining to quality of service, cost savings and customer satisfaction; and

WHEREAS, by offering a choice to consumers of health insurance coverage between a for-profit health care system and a patient-need-driven, not-for-profit health care system will make available to the consumer two diametrically opposed health insurance options with different foci and interests; and

WHEREAS, the 2008 Democratic Party Platform of August 25, 2008 under "Affordable, Quality Health Care Coverage for All Americans" states "If one thing came through in the platform hearings, it was that Democrats are united around a commitment that every American man, woman, and child be guaranteed affordable, comprehensive healthcare. In meeting after meeting, people expressed moral outrage with a health care crisis that leaves millions of Americans-including nine million children-without health insurance and millions more struggling to pay rising costs for poor quality care. Half of all personal bankruptcies in America are caused by medical bills. We spend more on health care than any other country, but we're ranked 47th in life expectancy and 43rd in child mortality. Our nation faces epidemics of obesity and chronic diseases as well as new threats like pandemic flu and bioterrorism. Yet despite all of this, less than four cents of every health care dollar is spent on prevention and public health.%u201D; and

WHEREAS, in the Presidential, Senatorial and Congressional elections of 2008 all the Democratic candidates promised that if elected they would vote for a public health service plan that would cover all Americans; and

WHEREAS, there are a number of Democratic Senators, Democratic Congresspersons and a Democratic President who are failing to honor the de facto understanding of the Americans who elected them; and

WHEREAS, it is the responsibility and the duty of Americans to see to it that the promises of the candidates running for public office are carried out by these candidates once elected and certified as office holders; and

WHEREAS, there are at least 64 members of Congress who have pledged to support a provision to include a not-for-profit health care option in the Health Care Reform Act of 2009,

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the undersigned grassroots activists and community members in a clear and emphatic manner demand the representatives we elected to public office honor the understanding sealed at the ballot box; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a copy of this resolution be presented to the Congress, Senators and the President of the United States, urging them to immediately and unequivocally pledge their support for a not-for-profit health care option; and

BE IT FINALLY, GLADLY AND GRATEFULLY RESOLVED, that a copy of this resolution with our gratitude and pledges of support be presented to the 64 members of Congress who so far have signed a letter to the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, pledging support for a provision to include a not-for-profit health care option in the Health Care Reform Act of 2009