BACKGROUND INFO: H.R.676 - Expanded & Improved Medicare For All Act was introduced to the House January 2017 and despite a number of co-sponsors, it has not received much traction. Bernie Sanders has finally announced a Senate companion bill to H.R.676 and he already has 15 co-sponsors signed on (non-marylanders). Both VanHollen and Cardin have made public comment about how they agree that healthcare is a human right, neither have signed on a co-sponsors.
ACTION: Call Maryland Senators Chris VanHollen 202-224-4654 and Ben Cardin 202-224-4524 and ask them to sign on as co-sponsors to Senator Sanders’s Medicare for All bill in the Senate.
SAMPLE SCRIPT: My name is [NAME] and I am calling from [ZIP CODE] to ask Senator [NAME] to sign as a co-sponsor to Senator Sanders’s Medicare for All Bill. While Senator [NAME] has publicly state that he supports healthcare for all, I am asking to put that statement into action by co-sponsoring this bill. Thank you for your time.
ADDITIONAL ACTION: Sign the MoveOn.org citizen’s petition in support of Medicare for All, which as of 8pm 9/13/17 already had over 100,000 signatures!
SOURCES:
CNN: Bernie Sanders Medicare for All Plan
USA Today: What would Bernie Sander's Medicare for All Plan Mean for You
Chicago Tribune: Bernie Sanders Health Plan
Washington Post: Bernie Sanders Single Payer Plan is Here
Physicians for a National Health Program Single Payer Resources