Letters Campaign

On being our own media

The Communications Team of the new Health Care for All-Oregon coalition is beginning a project to enlist volunteer writers across the state who are committed to advancing the cause of health care as a human right and to building our presence in the media. We'll make it easy for you to spread the message: replacement of our cruelly dysfunctional health care system with affordable, equitable and humane quality health care for everyone is not only possible but urgent. The stories of needless suffering are everywhere.

We ask you to commit to do one or more of these things:

Monitor your local newspaper for articles or letters relating to health care issues and alert us when you spot something of interest.

Submit letters to the editor (or longer op-eds) to your local newspaper and/or recruit others to submit letters to the editor. We need a team of writers in each area.

Keep in contact with us to share messages and stories.

What you can expect from the HCAO Communications team

A monthly message with the theme of the month, talking points and a sample letter which you can use or modify--or write your own.

Support on getting your letters and opinion-editorials published.

Information on messaging, writing, and Being the Media,

Resource materials for you to utilize.

If you would like help editing your letter or op-ed submission, please contact Dr.Samuel Metz, who has much expertise to share, and become part of the HCAO writing team. Let's Occupy the Media!

Joanne Cvar, HCAO communications chair

February 2013 Sample Letter, by Mary Wood, Eugene

Medicare for All is the solutions to our fiscal crisis

As we move towards sequestration (automatic and sweeping budget cuts due to the failure of Congress to agree on a viable budget plan), lawmakers and conservative public interest groups are yet again crying out for cuts to Medicare, claiming it is a “big government” program that runs up the national debt. A close look at the facts shows that, far from being a drain on American taxpayers, Medicare is the most efficient health insurance system in operation in the U.S. today. According to reports of the Medicare Boards of Trustees,

administrative costs account for only 1.4% of total Medicare spending. This percentage includes staff salaries, payments to insurance companies to process claims, IRS tax collection costs, Part B premium collection costs, and FBI fraud prevention expenditures. (While some critics of Medicare have been claiming a figure of 6%, taken from the National Health Expenditure Accounts report, that figure includes costs for privatized Parts C and D).

Compare this 1.4% to the 15 to 30% spent on administration for private insurance and it becomes clear that, rather than being cut, Medicare or a similar health insurance program should be extended to cover ALL Americans. Such an extension would allow for reform of our dysfunctional health care delivery system, in which we spend more than twice as much per person as any other developed nation and get less for our money. Medicare is a cost-efficient health care delivery system. Please urge your representatives to oppose cuts to Medicare.

Talking Points

Medicare is the solution to our fiscal crisis, not the problem.

Medicare is the most efficient health insurance system in operation in the U.S.
Administrative costs for Medicare are 1.4 percent to 6 percent (depending on whether privatized Parts C and D are taken into account).
Compare to administrative expense for private insurance at 15-30 percent.
We spend more than twice as much per person as any other developed nation on our dysfunctional health care delivery system, yet are at the bottom of the list, according to WHO. in terms of health care outcomes.