All aboard
Big lake? No problem. The Road to Health Care bus boarded the S.S. Badger to cross Lake Michigan into Wisconsin, saving a day's worth of driving time and keeping our health care message afloat.
Posted By: Stephanie Hoo on 6/19/2008 11:18:00 PM
In Lansing, power to the people
State Sen. Deborah Cherry introduced the Road to Health Care message at the Michigan State Capitol building on June 11, calling on both Lansing and Washington to do better and pointing out deficiencies in Sen. John McCain's health plan.
A new SEIU report details how McCain's plan would actually make it harder to get health care. Learn more about it here: http://www.seiu.org/media/pressreleases.cfm?pr_id=1673
"People in political power who can approve health care should do it," said Elizabeth Manning-Washington from Lansing, who is unemployed. "They help the stock markets and big oil companies with the click of a pen. They should be able to help the rest of us, too."
Eftikhar Saleh, a teacher from Dearborn, elaborates in this video clip.
Posted By: Stephanie Hoo on 6/19/2008 11:12:00 PM
Dodging raindrops in Muskegon
Thunder and lightning weren't enough to stop the big purple bus as it traveled to the lakeside town of Muskegon and set up outside the SEIU Healthcare Michigan office. The storm paused just long enough for the event on June 9, which featured nurses, home care aides and hospital workers -- including Lola Scott, who works in a senior living center.
"I see people without health insurance trying to self-medicate themselves, like in the old days," she said, "with homemade splints, mustard packs and hot toddies."
"In the old days, people used to die after getting a toothache because they didn't go to the dentist and the infection spread. People used to die at 35 or 40 years old. Do we want to go back to that?"
"No," she said, as the assembled crowd shook their heads.
From there, the bus headed to Lansing, to take its message of health care reform to Michigan's State Capitol.
Posted By: Stephanie Hoo on 6/19/2008 11:08:00 PM
Motoring into Detroit
The Road to Health Care teamed up with the Health Care for Michigan Campaign to collect signatures for a state ballot initiative that seeks to control costs and get more people insured.
"A lot of times you think no one cares and the system is just waitingfor you to die," said Karen Kirkland, an uninsured health care worker who was diagnosed with cancer eight years ago and still owes almost $20,000 in medical bills. Karen made about $16,000 last year – all of which went toward her medical debt and paying for medications.
"Michigan can do better. America can do better," she said at the May 27 event.
Karen was also interviewed by local radio -- with her story prominently featured during drive-time -- as SEIU volunteers fanned out across the Detroit suburb of Royal Oak to knock on doors and sign up more health care voters.
Posted By: Stephanie Hoo on 6/4/2008 8:14:00 AM
Toledo veterans say no to McCain
Year after year, Sen. John McCain has voted against fully funding Veterans' Affairs. This year, veterans are saying: enough.
"I don't understand why Sen. McCain would vote against vets' health care," said Toledo-area veteran Bob Stewart, who served in Vietnam. "I'd like to say to him: We never gave up hope on you. Why would you take away our hope for a decent life?"
Veteran Michael Friedman said he was appalled by how the Bush administration has turned its back on veterans by refusing to fund the VA. "John McCain is a fellow veteran, he is a true war hero. But unfortunately, I believe if he is elected, it will be just like a third term of George W. Bush."
In their remarks May 21 in Toledo, the veterans took McCain's record to task. They pointed out:
-- Sen. McCain voted against full funding for veterans' health care in 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007.
-- Sen. McCain voted against making veterans' health benefits a mandatory program.
-- Sen. McCain is even proposing to dismantle the VA by outsourcing care -- abandoning veterans to the HMO and corporate-dominated health care system that is failing tens of millions of Americans every day.
"It shouldn't be this hard," Friedman said. "It shouldn't be this hard for anyone in America to get the care they need -- let alone someone who risked everything and put his life on the line defending our country."
Posted By: Stephanie Hoo on 5/29/2008 6:43:00 AM