For Immediate Release: June 21, 2017
Contact: Robyn Shapiro, robyn.shapiro@
Thousands Protest ACA Repeal Across Country
As Senate Republicans rush through a secret bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act, thousands across the country are rising up and speaking out today to call on their senators to reject the American Health Care Act (AHCA) and its hundreds of billions in tax cuts to millionaires and corporations while stripping 23 million Americans of health insurance. Events from Arizona to Maine and from Oregon to Florida are highlighting the devastating impact of the repeal bill and demonstrating the widespread opposition to the GOP plan.
“While Republican senators try to shut their constituents out of the process and hide their disastrous bill behind closed doors, people across the country are standing up and refusing to be silenced. The actions today are just the latest clear demonstration that Americans do not want a bill that takes away health insurance from 23 million people, increases premiums, puts caps on coverage, ends Medicaid as we know it, and takes away protections for people with pre-existing conditions,” said Margarida Jorge and Ethan Rome, co-directors of Health Care for America Now (HCAN). “This bill would spell disaster for the health care we need in order to give massive tax cuts to the wealthy and insurance and drug companies. Members of Congress and senators should stop trying to destroy our health care and start listening to Americans speaking out from red and blue states alike.”
Health Care for America Now (HCAN) is helping lead the fight to protect coverage for families. HCAN led the grassroots campaign to pass the ACA and is a progressive coalition of community, labor, online, women’s and civil rights organizations.
In total, constituents are holding more than 50 events today in 26 states and the District of Columbia, including Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
Highlights from the events include:
- Hundreds are gathering for 24 hour vigils at Senator Toomey’s district offices across the state, sharing personal stories, calling on the Senator to protect their care, and delivering a petition against the Senate repeal bill.
- At Senator Collins’ Portland office, local Mainers are joining Faith in Public Life to ask Collins to vote against the Senate’s radical bill.
- Organize Florida is performing a political play at Senator Rubio’s Orlando office that demonstrates the dangers of the Senate bill’s massive tax breaks for the wealthy.
- Protesters are joining health care vigils across New Jersey, holding Reps. Frelinghuysen, Lance, LoBiondo, and MacArthur accountable for their vote and calling on them to reject the repeal bill in future votes.
- A large delegation came by bus and caravan from West Virginia and Ohio to bring their message directly to senators in Washington, D.C.
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Health Care for America Now (HCAN) is the national grassroots coalition that ran a $60 million five-and-a-half year campaign from 2008-2013 to pass, protect, and promote the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and protect Medicare and Medicaid. HCAN has come back together to fight the Republicans’ all-out effort to take away America’s health care and put people at the mercy of the health insurance companies again.
