If you think Texas and our country need health reform, if you have read our analyses with only an academic eye, and you have not called, written, or emailed your member of Congress yet to tell them so, now is the time for you to take action. This legislation is too important for your elected official not to hear from you directly.

We are on the verge of a monumental advance in access to good, affordable care for Americans, and an opportunity to make this degree of progress may not come around again for another generation. CPPP and TVHR urge you to make that call, send that email or FAX today, and encourage all who you can to do the same. This is your last chance to make a difference in getting health care reform over the finish line.

According to all the reports we’re getting from DC, we are in the final stretch for national health care reform. We expect to see legislative language in the next day or so, and Congress is expected to vote before the coming weekend is over. You and your networks can help by making your voices heard.

Anti-reform callers and special interests are flooding Members’ phone lines. Congress needs to hear from us now! We need every U.S. Representative from Texas who voted for the House’s reform bill to again commit to passing reform. If you are represented by a Democrat please call your Member of Congress and continue to call them every day until the final vote. If you are not represented by a Democrat, please call a Democratic office with the same message. Reach out to your networks and ask everyone to call.

Texans Voting YES on Health Reform:

• Henry Cuellar, 28th District (Laredo, McAllen, Seguin)
• Lloyd Doggett, 25th District (Austin, San Marcos)
• Charlie A Gonzalez, 20th District (San Antonio)
• Al Green, 9th District (Houston)
• Gene Green, 29th District (Houston, Baytown)
• Rubén Hinojosa, 15th District (Harlingen, McAllen)
• Sheila Jackson Lee, 18th District (Houston)
• Eddie Bernice Johnson, 30th District (Dallas)
• Solomon P Ortiz, 27th District (Brownsville, Corpus Christi)
• Silvestre Reyes, 16th District (El Paso)
• Ciro Rodriguez, 23rd District (San Antonio, Uvalde)

Voting No:

• Chet Edwards, 17th District (Waco, Bryan/College Station)

• All Republican members from Texas

Call toll-free 1-866-922-4970 (Due to a high frequency of phone calls, you might have to wait a while to be connected, but please be patient.)

Here is a suggested script for your calls to U.S Representatives:

“I am calling today to urge Congressman/Congresswoman _________ to get the job done and pass comprehensive national health reform as soon as possible!”

This is the most important part of your message! If you want to say more:

• Thank you for your hard work writing the House’s strong bill.
• Congress needs to pass comprehensive health care reform now; the consequences of doing nothing are too dire.
• Time is running out to pass reform; the door is closing on this historic opportunity.
• The Senate bill plus House improvements will help millions of uninsured Texans gain affordable coverage, and help millions more keep the coverage they have today.
• I pledge to support the Congresswoman(man) for her (his) championship of health reform.
• Share your own health care story or bring their attention to the health care stories profiled on www.texasvoiceforhealthreform.org

Don’t know who represents you? Visit www.house.gov to find out who represents you and the phone number for their district office.

Visit TVHR’s Letter to the Editor Guide for tips on writing letters to the editor and 11 helpful themes with background information to help you frame your letters.

Call Congress NOW! 1-877-264-4226

Though media reports may not yet have made it clear across the nation, the word in Washington DC is that the President and leaders of both chambers of Congress are solidly committed to doing what it takes to move health care reform across the finish line. They agree that failure to deliver comprehensive health reform is not an option, and they fully intend to seize this historic opportunity to move our country ahead. The notions of scaling back health reform or trying to instead pass bits and pieces of legislation have been quickly discarded as both ineffective and unnecessary.

The most likely path to passage is a two-step process in which the House would adopt the Senate’s bill, and another bill would be passed by both chambers which would modify the Senate version to include compromises negotiated between the two chambers.  Working out the exact timeline and process is our elected officials’ job; our job is to help keep them on track and hold them accountable:

1. Make sure our friends, neighbors and communities know that there is still a strong commitment to pass health reform,
2. Let members of Congress know that their constituents want and expect them to move forward with comprehensive reform, and
3. Educate our communities about the positive benefits of reform.

What to do right now?  Call Congress! 1-877-264-4226

We need every U.S. Representative from Texas who voted for the House’s reform bill to again commit to passing reform.  They need to hear from Texans that we want reform and we will stand behind them.  They are still hearing from the tea party contingent, and we must make our voices heard, too!

Texans Voting YES on Health Reform:

• Henry Cuellar, 28th District (Laredo, McAllen, Seguin)
• Lloyd Doggett, 25th District (Austin, San Marcos)
• Charlie A Gonzalez, 20th District (San Antonio)
• Al Green, 9th District (Houston)
• Gene Green, 29th District (Houston, Baytown)
• Rubén Hinojosa, 15th  District (Harlingen, McAllen)
• Sheila Jackson Lee, 18th District (Houston)
• Eddie Bernice Johnson,  30th District (Dallas)
• Solomon P Ortiz, 27th District (Brownsville, Corpus Christi)
• Silvestre Reyes, 16th District (El Paso)
• Ciro Rodriguez, 23rd District (San Antonio, Uvalde)

Voting No:

• Chet Edwards, 17th District (Waco, Bryan/College Station)
• all Republican members from Texas

If your own Representative voted “No” on health reform, please call another Texas Congressperson and urge them to vote yes!

Call toll-free 1-877-264-4226

Here is a suggested script for your calls to U.S Representatives:

I am calling today to urge Congressman/Congresswoman _________ to get the job done and pass comprehensive national health reform as soon as possible!

This is the most important part of your message!  If you want to say more:

• Thank you for your hard work writing the House’s strong bill.
• Please fight for “fixes” to the Senate bill, but I understand that there are limits to what is possible.
• The Senate bill plus House improvements will help millions of uninsured Texans gain affordable coverage, and help millions more keep the coverage they have today.
• I pledge to support the Congresswoman(/man) them for her(/his) championship of health reform.

Next:  Make an Appointment!

The February Congressional recess is February 15-19, and this is a great opportunity to meet with your member of Congress at home in their district.  Call your member’s district office today to make an appointment to talk about how important health reform is to you.  In the coming week, Texas Voice for Health Reform will send you talking points, scripts and background materials you can use when meeting with your Congressperson and talking to your congregations and communities.

Don’t know who represents you? Visit www.house.gov to find out who represents you and the phone number for their district office.

After a couple of days of regrouping and strategizing, a plan of action has coalesced for Americans who are outraged by the notion that health reform legislation might be stopped in its tracks.

Please remember today that no matter who employs you and what their position on health reform is, you can and must speak up as an American for health reform at this critical hour.

If you are angry that pursuit of the “perfect” has driven a stake through the heart of the GOOD, now is the time to take action in either your personal OR professional capacity and make sure YOUR voice is as clear as the Tea party folks were last summer.

1) CALL!

Following the lead of our national partners, we are urging Texans to call Congress every day until they get the job done!

Specifically, call your House member (Visit www.congress.org to find out who represents you)

Call Toll Free: 1-800-828-0498 (ask to be connected to the U.S. Representative’s office)

The message to the House:

1. Failure to pass real comprehensive health reform is not acceptable!
2. Pass the Senate Bill and we will stand by you.  Let us know how we can help.
3. We support your seeking “fixes” to the Senate bill through Budget Reconciliation, but do not let reform die!

Call the White House, too!
Although the primary target is the House, it is important that the Administration also hears supportive messages. You can do this by calling the White House comments line at 202-456-1414 or 202-456-1111. Please be aware that wait times may be long. You can also send an electronic message

2) WRITE!!

We encourage your organization to sign on to this letter to Members of Congress by Families USA using their online form

3) RALLY!!!

In Austin, MoveOn.org has scheduled a rally for Tuesday, January 26th at the Texas Capitol.  Click here for more information and to RSVP

South Gate of the State Capitol, 11th and Congress (Map)
Austin, TX 78701
Tuesday, January 26th, 12:00 PM

If you know of other health reform events happening in Texas, please share it with us so we can post it on our calendar.  We will forward more updates on actions in Texas as we receive them.

When: 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, November 14, 2009.

Where: South Side of the Texas Capitol, 1100 Congress Ave., in downtown Austin. Free parking available at Capitol Visitors’ Parking Garage located at 1201 San Jacinto (12th & San Jacinto – one block east of the Capitol).

Why: This is it – the decisive moment on historic health care reform legislation. Let’s send a strong message that Texans want decent health care for all Americans and we want it now!  Come to the Health Care Can’t Wait Rally  to show support and make some noise for meaningful health care reform. Speakers include State Reps. Garnet Coleman and Elliott Naishtat. Moderator:  Linda Chavez-Thompson.  There will also be free music, food, and refreshments!

Sponsors: Alliance for Retired Americans, Texas Alliance for Retired Americans, Center for Public Policy Priorities, Health Care for America NOW!, MoveOn.org, Organizing for America, Texas AFL-CIO, Texas Democratic Party, Travis County Democratic Party, Texas AFT, La Fe Policy Research and Education Center, NAACP, LULAC, SEIU, Texas State Teachers Association, Grey Panthers, St. Edward’s College Democrats, TexPIRG, and North Texas Jobs With Justice.

We need volunteers!  To volunteer for this event contact laura@traviscountydemocracts.org

Today, join with people across the country to let Congress know that “It’s Time to Deliver!” and help set a national record in calls to Congress.

1.  Call 866-279-5474 to reach the Capitol switchboard

2.Tell them “My name is (YOUR NAME) and I’m from (CITY).  I’m calling to ask the Representative/Senator to support efforts to make health care legislation more affordable for working families.”

3. After making your calls, copy and paste these three steps into an email to send to your family and friends.

4. If you use Twitter and/or Facebook, post this text:

Help set a national call-in record and let Congress know “It’s Time to Deliver!” 866-279-5474 #hcr #healthreform http://ow.ly/vrYI

5. Find Time to Deliver Events in your area and bring your friends along!

Five days after that story was posted online Senator Kyl of Arizona made the following remarks in defense of his proposed amendments to the Senate Finance Committee’s health reform bill which would strike language defining which benefits employers are required to cover:

“I don’t need maternity care,” Kyl said. “So requiring that on my insurance policy is something that I don’t need and will make the policy more expensive.”

Women around the country have been outraged at these remarks and in response, the National Women’s Law Center launched a baby photo email campaign to let Senator Kyl and his colleagues in the Senate know that coverage for women’s health, including basic maternity care,  must be included in health reform.

What do you think?  Should health insurance plans cover maternity as a standard benefit?  Leave a comment and share your opinion.

More articles on this topic:

•    The Huffington Post
•    Think Progress

Join CPPP’s webinar next Tuesday, October 6 from 1:30-2:30 p.m. CDT.

Log-in and Call-in Details

Dial-in number for audio: 866.740.1260

Web access: http://www.readytalk.com
To test your computer for compatibility prior to the conference, visit http://test.readytalk.com.

Access code: 3200112

We will cover:

• New U.S. Census reports on uninsured Texans;
• Where bills are in Congress’ process, and the latest expected timelines;
• Main components of House and Senate bills;
• How those bills would affect Texas – including explaining the HHSC estimates quoted by Senator Cornyn;
• How premium assistance for low-and-moderate income families would work;
• Which small employers would be exempt from new requirements, and what larger employers would be required to do; and
• CPPP’s top goals and concerns for the legislation —emphasis on low-income Texans.

There will be time for questions and answers.

Coming Soon

• Tuesday October 13, 10:30 a.m. CDT: Webinar on New Census Data on Poverty In Texas (watch email for details)

This week Organizing for America announced their video challenge, asking Americans to submit their case for why we need health reform. Participants will compete to have their video on national television! Visit Organizing for America to get started.

It is especially important that we generate an overwhelming number of calls to Congress this week to pre-empt the large-scale, anti-health reform rally and lobbying being planned to take place in Washington, D.C. this weekend.

1. Use this toll-free number to reach the Capitol switchboard: 1-800-828-0498.
2. Request to speak with your member of Congress (visit http://www.congress.org/congressorg/home/ and enter your ZIP code to find out who represents you in Congress).
3. Let your representative know that health care can’t wait and that you want Congress to pass comprehensive health care reform this year!
4. Please forward this message to your contacts and post on your social networking profiles.