(Washington, DC) The NAACP issued the following statement today in response to Senator Max Baucus’ (D-MT) health care reform bill.
“It is disappointing to see that Senator Baucus, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, did not include a public option in his health care reform bill. Real health care reform must include a strong public option for individuals and families, without it, millions of American families and children will continue to find quality, affordable health care out of reach,” stated NAACP President and CEO Benjamin Todd Jealous.
“A public health care option is about choice and competition. It is to health care what the postal service is to the mail system, it creates an option for low cost, basic coverage and creates honest competition for private insurers. While Senator Baucus was valiant in his effort to create a compromise, this effort falls short of the true goals of real health care reform,” stated Hilary O. Shelton, Senior Vice President for Advocacy and Director of the NAACP’s DC Bureau.
“Over 46 million Americans are without health insurance, 8 million children are without health insurance and 880,000 African Americans would be alive today if we had enacted health care reform in the past decade. It is time to put the needs of America’s family’s front and center and not the needs of insurance companies and their CEOs,” added Jealous.
Founded in 1909, the NAACP is the nation's oldest and largest civil rights organization. Its members throughout the United States and the world are the premier advocates for civil rights in their communities, conducting voter mobilization and monitoring equal opportunity in the public and private sectors.
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