Story and photos by Leni Santoro
[MONTICELLO] – Despite the drizzle and the darkening sky, last Wednesday evening (August 26) several Sullivan County citizens held a rally and candlelight vigil outside the Town of Thompson Town Hall in support of health care reform.
Holding signs that ran the gamut from, “Medicare is Government Insurance and It Works,” ”Yes, Health Care Reform” and “Public Option Now” to “Canadians Live Longer,” the group hoped to draw the public’s attention to improving the American Health Care System and away from allegations that the current reform bill before Congress is full of negative aspects.
Ann Brown credited Graham Bond with being “the seed” that got the rally started.
“I received a call to do this kind of thing across America from organizations like Organizing for America, the Barack Obama grassroots organization, and also Move On America,” said Bond. “…now is a pivotal time that people around America can really be heard against the interests of the large money groups…”
Just then a rainbow broke through the light drizzle that had been steadily falling since the group began to assemble at 6 p.m.
Priscilla Basset and several members from the Senior Legislative Action Committee (SLAC) were also present at the rally. It has long been SLAC’s hope that the government would develop a single payer plan – health insurance for all – that would be based on the Medicare model.
Among those in attendance were members of the medical profession, those who also may be affected deeply by whatever plan is devised, be it the bill before congress or a single payer plan such as SLAC has been pushing for.
“In my opinion single payer is Medicare for all,” began Joanne Omar. “I represent the doctors offices…Medicare is really not giving them fair reimbursement, but if you come up with a fair compensation for the doctors that’s the answer. You’re covered from the minute your born to the minute you die.”
When asked about the patients that a doctor may not be seeing due to their lack of health insurance, Omar had this to say.
“I mean, I can tell you, I am for any other option than pushing around papers all day and fighting denials and getting authorizations,” she said. “No doctor in their right mind has to think that’s a good system. I know a lot of the specialists are vehemently opposed to anything like this. Neuro-surgeons, orthopedic surgeons, their terrified of this. But in our office I can tell you, we push around papers all day and the patients get lost. There’s got to be a better way. It has to stop.”
In rebuttal to those that imply that the President’s health care plan would mean certain death for the elderly and severely injured, Omar continued her explanation of how things are now in her opinioin.
“And, death panels; we have death panels. It’s the health insurance industry, those are the death panels,” she stated. “The health insurance industry now that’s rationing the care, those are your death panels. We have to fight the lies that are out there. We have to fight the lies. There’s got to be a better way.”
“Why aren’t we marching in the streets?” she asked. “You’d think that today, with Teddy Kennedy’s passing, we have to do it for him, don’t you think we have to do it for the Lion?”
They weren’t marching, instead they were standing a drizzling rain in front of the Town of Thompson Town Hall in Monticello, but if the sounds of cars honking in support as they drove past were any indication, they were getting their message across.
To view more photos from Taking It to the Streets for Health Care Reform visit the Chronicle on Zenfolio.
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The Catskill Chronicle 
Taking It to the Streets for Health Care Reform
Posted in Comments, tagged health care, health care reform, rainbow, rally, Ted Kennedy on September 1, 2009| Leave a Comment »
Story and photos by Leni Santoro
[MONTICELLO] – Despite the drizzle and the darkening sky, last Wednesday evening (August 26) several Sullivan County citizens held a rally and candlelight vigil outside the Town of Thompson Town Hall in support of health care reform.
Holding signs that ran the gamut from, “Medicare is Government Insurance and It Works,” ”Yes, Health Care Reform” and “Public Option Now” to “Canadians Live Longer,” the group hoped to draw the public’s attention to improving the American Health Care System and away from allegations that the current reform bill before Congress is full of negative aspects.
Ann Brown credited Graham Bond with being “the seed” that got the rally started.
“I received a call to do this kind of thing across America from organizations like Organizing for America, the Barack Obama grassroots organization, and also Move On America,” said Bond. “…now is a pivotal time that people around America can really be heard against the interests of the large money groups…”
Priscilla Basset and several members from the Senior Legislative Action Committee (SLAC) were also present at the rally. It has long been SLAC’s hope that the government would develop a single payer plan – health insurance for all – that would be based on the Medicare model.
Among those in attendance were members of the medical profession, those who also may be affected deeply by whatever plan is devised, be it the bill before congress or a single payer plan such as SLAC has been pushing for.
“In my opinion single payer is Medicare for all,” began Joanne Omar. “I represent the doctors offices…Medicare is really not giving them fair reimbursement, but if you come up with a fair compensation for the doctors that’s the answer. You’re covered from the minute your born to the minute you die.”
When asked about the patients that a doctor may not be seeing due to their lack of health insurance, Omar had this to say.
“I mean, I can tell you, I am for any other option than pushing around papers all day and fighting denials and getting authorizations,” she said. “No doctor in their right mind has to think that’s a good system. I know a lot of the specialists are vehemently opposed to anything like this. Neuro-surgeons, orthopedic surgeons, their terrified of this. But in our office I can tell you, we push around papers all day and the patients get lost. There’s got to be a better way. It has to stop.”
In rebuttal to those that imply that the President’s health care plan would mean certain death for the elderly and severely injured, Omar continued her explanation of how things are now in her opinioin.
“And, death panels; we have death panels. It’s the health insurance industry, those are the death panels,” she stated. “The health insurance industry now that’s rationing the care, those are your death panels. We have to fight the lies that are out there. We have to fight the lies. There’s got to be a better way.”
“Why aren’t we marching in the streets?” she asked. “You’d think that today, with Teddy Kennedy’s passing, we have to do it for him, don’t you think we have to do it for the Lion?”
They weren’t marching, instead they were standing a drizzling rain in front of the Town of Thompson Town Hall in Monticello, but if the sounds of cars honking in support as they drove past were any indication, they were getting their message across.
To view more photos from Taking It to the Streets for Health Care Reform visit the Chronicle on Zenfolio.
Click any service in this box to share this post with your friends!
Read Full Post »