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Watch the Bipartisan Health Reform Meeting

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The Bipartisan Meeting on Health Reform will be broadcasting live at 10am EST and available on our blog. Please feel free to ask questions or comment below and please sign the petition explained below.

Today, our elected leaders in Washington are gathering to continue their debate on overhauling a health care system that fails far too many Americans. We?re hopeful they do the work we elected them to do: break through the gridlock, work together and leave the partisan posturing at the door.

If we act quickly, we can take advantage of the national attention on health care to send a clear message to our officials. We just joined forces with the American Cancer Society and others to push a national call to action urging members of both parties to ?come together quickly to pass a meaningful (health care reform) bill that improves access to insurance coverage and lowers the costs of care.?
We need 50,000 people to sign the call so that we can send a strong message to Congress. Will you please sign the petitionhelp by adding your name and also asking your friends and family to do the same?

Americans are tired of the political theater. We expect real progress and real reform from our leaders. The LIVESTRONG mission is to advocate for meaningful policies that support cancer survivors. Join us in sending a message to Washington they can’t ignore.
We need to pull together in this moment. Our voices were heard on both sides of the aisle last fall, but the shifting political landscape has made real reform more elusive than ever. But if we come together?in great numbers?we?ll be impossible to ignore.
Can you please take a moment to add your name to the national health care call to action? please sign the petitionYour voice could make a huge difference.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Linda-Price-Self/1169115997 Linda Price Self

    I currently have health care coverage. I have a handicapped child, now an adult, that is still covered under our plan. I also have a chronic, incurable medical condition and between the two of us, we will never be able to switch plans. Coverage keeps decreasing while premiums increase. We currently pay $1,900 a month. Even this is not a “cadillac plan”. There is a $5,000 deductible per person, plus we pay a co-pay for each doctor visit and each medication. Meds currently run us just under $500 per month. In addition, my son just had to get a new wheelchair, our portion was about $1,200. There has to be a better way. I have also witnessed those without insurance that used the same clinics as my son. The difference in care was shocking. Same hospitals, same surgeons, but whereas my son had surgery within 12 hours of birth, I met parents whose son was a month old, still awaiting the surgery that can prevent brain damage. These were not illegal aliens. Just poor, young, simple parents, whose child’s condition was overwhelming. Surely our country can do better.

  • Karen in CA

    Linda you have every right to be outraged and panicked. Americans have every right to DEMAND health care reform. But let’s not just pummel our fists demanding ‘change’ without first looking at what will be handed to us. We need real change, real reform, not what this political theater of a “Bipartisan” Health “Reform” Meeting will give us.

    The White House claims that we will save $100 billion over 10 years and $1 Trillion over 20 years with this “reform”. The Wall Street Journal estimates the bill will cost $950 billion over 10 years. A tax increase of more that $1,000,000,000 is needed in the next 10 years to cover the current “reform” bill.

    There WILL be a massive healthcare tax increase on every American earning less than $250K a year. Not only that, they are planning to push it through despite 56% of Americans having already said they don’t want THIS reform bill, via a sneaky, illegal act.

    I’m all for big changes but I don’t like receiving bogus political chants via email from Livestrong saying inane and meaningless things about pushing through whatever is on the table, as long as it involves ‘change’. God help us all.

  • James in Virginia

    I am a cancer survivor and my wife is fighting cancer. We are both against this health care reform bill that hands over control of 17% of the U.S. economy to the crooks in Congress. Take a look at Canada’s failing health care system. That will be our future if this bill is passed into law. How about some real reform such as allowing insurance companies to compete across state lines? Competition between private insurance companies will bring premiums lower and improve subscriber benefits. The U.S. government has no business mandating how much I am able to earn as a truck driver, nor does it have any business mandating how much a top rate physician can earn. This bill is bad news for all Americans.

  • Judy

    Karen, Don’t know where you got your figures, but most Americans do want health care reform. If you are listening to some of the biased talk shows, you may tend to believe their trumped up poll figures. Even today, in the summit, 2 Republicans gave false information in an attempt to sway people to their side. Those against health care reform are in the minority and in this country, majority rules.

  • China Gates

    I urge the readers to ask Congress to write another bill.
    Don’t believe the lies of Democrats, whether promises of their perfect world to come,or condemnation of Republicans. Just look at the mess Democrats have made of this opportunity.
    The Republicans never had enough votes to stop this thing anyway.
    AND JUDY: the President,Harry Reid and quite a few others were both lying their butts off today too.
    And by the way, Majority doesn’t rule, the Constitution rules.

  • Karen in CA

    Try Rasmussen for one. http://www.pollster.com/polls/us/healthplan.php

    This link to Pollster will show you ALL the polls, including Pew, Rasmussen, Newsweek. See for yourself. You sound like the one listening to biased info. Sure Americans want health care reform but you make it sound like any ol one will do. Americans don’t want THIS one. Politicians are not to be trusted, any of them. I know people who have personally read variations of this bill (the current one is not available but is not much different) and no one in their right mind with any brains would want what is in it. There are many ways to lower costs, this bill doesn’t even begin to help in the ways that matter. Unfortunately, you’ve been duped and Americans all may suffer further for it.

  • Karen in CA

    Let’s spend our time keeping ALL politicians in check, educating ourselves as to what is in these bills and pushing for meaningful reform, not just the one “your guy” is pushing for because he is the one in office. Kool-aid anyone?

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Linda-Price-Self/1169115997 Linda Price Self

    This is sad. I thought it would be a discussion about healthcare in country, not politics.

  • Karen in CA

    What happened to healthy debate and free speech? What happened to the comments that were posted here yesterday? Shame! Shame on you Livestrong and shame on your moderator! You are supposed to stand for something worthwhile – the fight against cancer but you’ve diluted that with politics and now this disgraceful display of censorship. I doubt this will get posted but this message is for you, moderator. America really is in trouble.

  • Karen in CA

    Linda, unfortunately life IS politics. Washington has a lot of control over how you live. And frankly, if Livestrong sent out the email they did, pushing for the current health care reform bill, then that is political too and this discussion is warranted. What you are experiencing with your health care coverage is a result of past-politics and will be affected by future politics. You should be very vigilant.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Linda-Price-Self/1169115997 Linda Price Self

    If people of this site can’t leave politics out, what hope for there that the politicians, in charge of the issue, will be able to? I am not outraged, panicked, duped, etc., and my life is not politics. Is it possible to discuss the current state of healthcare, or its reform, without bringing parties or other personal views into account?

  • Karen in CA

    Is it possible to discuss the weather without talking about whether or not it’s going to rain? How do you not bring politics into this when politicians are the ones in control of the form in which health care reform will take its shape? I simply don’t understand people who want to discuss something…but not really. I’ll tell you who politicized this topic. Livestrong. By appealing that we push something through and quickly…well, what does that mean? What could we possibly push through quickly that hasn’t already been drafted and is sitting in the Senate today? Of course, the reference is to the current bill. The current bill which would be suicide to Livestrong’s cause – absolute suicide. Who has politicized it by posting a feed to the actual summit here on these pages? Livestrong. So you are here on the blog’s comments page for the healthcare summit but you want to leave politics out of the discussion? Come again?

  • James in Virginia

    Livestrong has been a valuable resource to my wife. For that, I am grateful. I am however, disappointed with the e-mails urging me to call my Congressman to support the current health care reform bill. This is a bill that very few people (outside of DC) know much about. The little that is known, does not look promising for the American public. Right now, as Americans, we have the best physicians in the world. One of the reasons for having outstanding doctors is the monetary gain associated with doing the work that they love. If the federal government is to dictate what a procedure is worth or which patients are allowed to have these procedures, Americans will cease to have the best health care in the world. It does sting when my medical insurance cost increases and the amount of coverage decreases even with preventative measures (immunizations etc.), but government controlled insurance companies and massive tax increases are not the answer to this problem. I would urge Livestrong members to contact their Senators and Representatives and tell them not to vote in favor of this current health care reform bill. If their plan is so wonderful, why do we not see any benefits until 2014? If this plan is the cure for what ails American health care, why are our Congressmen exempt from having to participate? They should be proud to participate if it in fact delivers everything that they have promised.