This week on the Health Care for All blog, we'll be featuring health care stories from real people. Several powerful personal health care stories were filmed at the HealthCare4Every1 rally (and the council meeting that followed) in Bristol, this is Rhiannon's.

This week on the Health Care for All blog, we'll be featuring health care stories from real people. Several powerful personal health care stories were filmed at the HealthCare4Every1 rally in Bristol, this is Rep. Boukus'.

This week on the Health Care for All blog, we'll be featuring health care stories from real people. Several powerful personal health care stories were filmed at the HealthCare4Every1 rally (and the council meeting that followed) in Bristol, this is Jody's.

This week on the Health Care for All blog, we'll be featuring health care stories from real people. Several powerful personal health care stories were filmed at the HealthCare4Every1 rally in Bristol, this is Joella's.

Rep. Frank Nicastro

Rep. Frank Nicastro spoke passionately at last week's rally (previous report here) about the importance of never forgetting where you came from, and about our responsibility to fight for adequate and affordable health care for all.

Click on the "Read More" link to see Sen. Colapietro's speech from the Healthcare4Every1 rally in Bristol June 10th

Governor Rell announced late Friday, June 13th that she had vetoed HB 5536, An Act Establishing the Connecticut Healthcare Partnership. In her statement, Rell emphasizes her agreement with the spirit of the bill:

“Not only do I believe the measure is well-intentioned, I also believe the concept has real potential to help at least some cities, towns, nonprofits and small businesses reduce their health care costs,” Governor Rell said.

As nice as it is that Governor Rell agrees with the intention of the bill, Representative Chris Donovan says that the basis of her veto is flawed, as reported by Christine Stuart at CT News Junkie:

Majority Leader Chris Donovan, D-Meriden, said, “The information the governor used to reach her decision is wrong - she was swayed by threats and numbers from the insurance companies and not the comprehensive analysis that we provided.”

Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said, “This veto will be a lasting legacy — an unnecessary, unfair setback to public health. This tragic missed opportunity blocks good insurance for hundreds of thousands of Connecticut citizens.”

Click on the "read more" link to continue reading this post

Last night I attended a Healthcare4Every1 Rally in Bristol, immediately after which nearly 500 petition signatures were presented to the city council to urge its passage of the "City of Bristol Health Care Resolution." The resolution passed unanimously but for one abstention, as Steve Collins reports in the Bristol Press:

City councilors unanimously backed that call at Tuesday’s meeting. One member of the council, Republican Ken Cockayne, abstained because he sells insurance. “You can be sure this City Council is behind this resolution wholeheartedly,” [Bristol Mayor Art] Ward said.

Though the passage of the resolution is itself noteworthy, equally notable (if not more so) were the many heart-wrenching stories of how our inadequate health care system continues to fail in providing adequate, affordable health care. In the coming days, I hope to post video of some of these stories to this blog.

If you would like to get involved or get more information on how to pass a similar resolution in your town, contact Jody Trestman, Cari Carter, or Joella Bouchard Mudry.

The Health Care Partnership Bill (HB 5536) was delivered to Governor Rell on May 29, at which point she had 15 days to act by either signing it in to law or stamping it with a VETO. Although Governor Rell has indicated that she plans to veto the bill, she has yet to act. If you have not yet called Governor Rell to encourage her to sign the bill into law, please do so now.

As wonderful as it would be if Governor Rell could be counted on to sign the Healthcare Partnership bill, we must prepare ourselves for the the VETO she is likely to stamp on it. HB 5536 goes a long way toward increasing the affordability of health care for small businesses, municipalities, and non-profits, all of which "feel the pinch" of increasing expenses, as the Governor might say.

Click on "Read More" to continue reading this article

Health Care is an issue that is sometimes deeply interconnected with other issues that we care about, and I think that notion is reinforced in an article that appeared in the NY Times business section last week entitled Health's Gain may Be Army's Loss:

• Last week The Commonwealth Fund issued a scorecard ranking all 50 states and the District of Columbia on 13 factors relevant to the performance of the child health system in each state. Overall the highest ranking states are Iowa and Vermont, which rank 1st and 2nd respectively.
  The report indicates that Connecticut provides high quality health care, but at an unnecessarily high cost, a factor on which we rank 49 out of 51.
• There is still time to urge Governor Rell to sign HB 5536 into law! HCFA Coalition member Council 4 AFSCME has a wealth of background and supporting information to help you learn more about the Health Care Partnership bill, so if you need some materials to convince your friends to join you in supporting HB 5536 and calling on Governor Rell to sign it, check out the Council 4 page on the bill.
• 60% of respondents to a Courant Poll last week say that Rell should not veto HB 5536.