ACTION ALERT: Public Option is Vital for Health Care Reform

Very soon, the House of Representatives will vote on historic health care reform legislation. Your Representative needs to hear from you right now! The public option, which will ensure consumer choice and control rising costs, hangs in the balance.

Please contact your Representative immediately and ask him or her to support the public option as part of health care reform.

Also, please ask your friends and neighbors to contact their Representative as well. Forward this email alert to them and let them know how important health care reform really is. The steps we take in the next few weeks will determine whether quality, affordable health care will be available to all Americans!

The League of Women Voters believes that Congress must pass strong health care reform legislation that guarantees quality, safe and affordable health care to all U.S. residents, including the choice of a public insurance plan. Everyone deserves the choice of a government administered health insurance plan like Medicare that would compete with private health insurance plans. Our health care is too important to be left only to private insurance companies.

Opponents of reform are concentrating on the public insurance option because they know it is the key to controlling costs and ensuring consumer choice.

Without these essential elements, health care reform can't succeed over the long term, so we must remind our representatives that the public option will make it possible for Americans who cannot obtain coverage through traditional employer-sponsored plans to find health insurance at a reasonable price.

The House will be considering H.R. 3200, America's Affordable Health Choices Act, which is a strong and comprehensive bill supported by the leadership. But additional support from rank and file members of the House of Representatives is still needed.

Members of Congress need to demonstrate real leadership and move forward by passing comprehensive health care reform, including the public option.

Take action today to encourage your Representative to support HR 3200!

TAKE ACTION

1. Contact your Representative now Tell him or her to support HR 3200 with the public option. Emphasize that the public insurance option will guarantee consumer choice in health care while controlling costs.

2. Send this alert to other concerned citizens - your grassroots network, your friends, neighbors and coworkers. Encourage them to contact their Representative today!

BACKGROUND

Health care reform is a complex issue on which the League has worked for many years.