Above: Olympia physican Stephen Albrecht speaks at a health care rally in Sylvester Park in Olympia today.
by Janine Gates
www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com
A few dozen health care reform activists met downtown today in Sylvester Park at a rally that urged passage of a health care bill before Christmas.
"The Patient Protection and Affordable Act is, to a great extent supported by the American Academy of Family Physicians," said local physician Stephen Albrecht of Olympia Family Medicine. "We are long overdue for this and we want Santa Murray, Santa Cantwell, Santa Reid and others to know we want it for Christmas! So that's the doctor's prescription - you need to call Murray and Cantwell....Let's wrap it up before Christmas!" yelled Albrecht. Senator Harry Reid (D-Nevada) is the Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate.
According to the Congressional Budget Office, Senator Reid's health care bill, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act "is fully paid for, will provide coverage to more than 94 percent of Americans while costing some $894 billion over ten years and reduce the deficit over the next ten years."
Representatives from labor, senior, women's health care, and other organizations also participated at the rally, sponsored in part by Health Care for America Now! Olympia's rally was one of nine occurring today in Washington.
Holiday cards were made available to participants to write to Washington senators Murray and Cantwell, and congressional representatives Adam Smith and Brian Baird, to urge their support of current health care legislation.
Above: Trying to keep warm, Debby Pattin accepts food bank donations and hands out health care related information at the rally today in Olympia.
For more information and daily updates on the current national health care legislation, go to: www.healthcareforamericanow.org
