Healthy People, Healthy Planet - part 2

Last week's Progresstival highlighted the need for citizen action on two fundamental issues - fighting castastrophic global warming and working to change our biased and broken healthcare system.

On Friday, a group of citizens met with Rep. Ron Kind's La Crosse aide, urging Kind's co-sponsorship of the Green New Deal, a strong first step to systematically address carbon emissions, crumbling and outdated infrastructure, environmental justice, energy deficits, quality meaningful employment, and past and current injustice and inequity in our most fundamental systems.

We learned that Ron Kind will be at a La Crosse listening session around Feb 20 EVENT POSTPONED (new details coming) and this will give us a second chance to make our concerns known. Please get, print, and circulate the petition (print on BOTH sides of the page!) asking Rep. Kind and Senator Tammy Baldwin to join the (so far) 64 US Representatives and nine US Senators who are already signed on as cosponsors. Make a copy of filled pages and save them for an upcoming (details tba) event at Senator Baldwin's office. Bring the originals to the Kind listening session (or email and we'll pick them up to deliver with others). And you can always call or email Kind's office.

We also need to keep up the pressure to pass Medicare for All legislation. It's supported by a majority of Americans (even Republicans). The Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) may have been a necessary (compromised) first step, but clearly Republican attacks, rollback of support, and lack of enforcement show it's not good enough.

Medical bankruptcy is still common, most Americans are one medical emergency away from financial ruin, the divide is growing between those who can and those who can't afford the increasing co-pays, deductibles, out of pockets, and other personal expenses, and rural systems are crumbling. And our broken system is twice as expensive as those of our peers.

Attend a barnstorm (2/12 in La Crosse) to learn hiw you can help and/or contact Ron Kind.