U.S. Poverty Weekly Update June 13, 2017
U.S. Poverty Campaigns
Weekly Update | June 13, 2017
“I grew up in poverty in rural S.D., so I know just how important CHIP and Medicaid are for low-income families.”
—RESULTS Chicago and South Dakota volunteer Dani Adams in a June 3 letter to the editor in the Sioux Falls Argus Leader
- Got Two Minutes? Get Ready for the U.S. Poverty National Webinar with Rep. Barbara Lee TONIGHT at 8:00pm ET
- Got Ten Minutes? Call and Recruit to Protect Medicaid (June Action)
- Got Another Ten Minutes? Write to Protect Medicaid (June Action)
- Conference FLASH SALE: Register by Thursday to Get Early Bird Discount
- Quick News
- Upcoming Events
Quick Action: Tell Senators to Protect Medicaid
| Take Action! |
Got Two Minutes? Get Ready for the U.S. Poverty National Webinar with Rep. Barbara Lee TONIGHT at 8:00pm ET
Tonight, June 13, is the RESULTS U.S. Poverty National Webinar. With the Senate moving closer to a health care deal that could end Medicaid as we know it, it is all hands-on deck this month to stop that from happening. To get us inspired, we are honored to have Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA-13) to talk to us about the threats to Medicaid and other anti-poverty programs and how we can protect them. We’ll also review the June Action focused on calls and letters to the editor to Congress and preview next month’s RESULTS International Conference. We’ll have shares and you’ll get to meet our new interns for the summer. Please join us.
TAKE ACTION: Take two minutes to remind your local RESULTS group about the RESULTS U.S. Poverty National Grassroots Webinar tonight, June 13 at 8:00 pm ET. Remind members if your group is meeting for the call or if group members (and Free Agents) are calling in on their own. The webinar is done through Fuze meeting. To join online, login at http://fuze.me/32255914 or dial in by phone at (201) 479-4595, Meeting ID: 32255914#. Plan to log in or call in no later than 7:55 pm ET.
The slides for the June Webinar are available on our National Webinars page. If your group is listening to the call later, we’ll put a link to the call on this page after the webinar.
Got Ten Minutes? Call and Recruit to Protect Medicaid (June Action)
It seems that the Senate might be inching closer to a health care deal they can vote on this month. Reports are that some concessions to moderate Republicans in the Senate might be working to get them to support the proposal. The proposal still remains a secret (and won’t be released until the last possible minute) but even the few scant details we do know don’t bode well millions of Americans who rely on Medicaid and the ACA for health coverage. The Senate is using the House health bill as the basis for their bill, with leaders even saying that they are willing to do 80 percent of what the House did. Considering the biggest cuts in the House bill came from Medicaid, this is bad news. Plus, the concessions moderates are warming to are to slow down the end to the ACA’s Medicaid expansion. It seems they are fine with ending the expansion eventually and capping funding for the program for years to come.
We can take nothing for granted. We must assume the Senate will have a final bill to vote on soon (possibly sending one to the Congressional Budget Office for scoring this week). That means we need to be in action and urging others to do the same. Some are saying that public activism on this issue has been waning, which could give senators room to get a bill passed. It’s time to ramp back up.
TAKE ACTION: Take ten minutes to call both your Senate offices today and tell them to oppose any legislation that cuts or restructures Medicaid or ends the Medicaid expansion. While calls to all senators are important (even those who oppose Medicaid cuts), calls to Republican senators in these states are particularly important: AK, AZ, AR, CO, LA, ME, NV, OH, TN, and WV. The June Action has the number and a script you can use to call and leave a message with the receptionist. Keep trying until you get through (try local offices if you cannot get through to the DC office).
Once you’ve made both your calls, send a message to your Local Action Networks, friends, and family via e-mail or social media urging them to call as well. Senators need to hear from as many people as possible urging them to oppose any legislation that ends Medicaid as we know it. Use our new call-in flyer to help get the word out.
Got Twenty Minutes? Write to Protect Medicaid (June Action)
The health care of millions of Americans is at stake. The Senate is trying to bring a health care bill to the floor soon built on the House health bill passed last month. Sadly, this process is the exact opposite of the health reform debate seven years ago over the Affordable Care Act. That debate took over a year, included over 100 hearings, and included members of both parties. The current effort has included secrecy, no Senate hearings (as Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) pointed out last week), no effort at bipartisanship, and is being rushed through at breakneck speed.
The reason is that Senate leadership knows that whatever bill they come up with will be unpopular. They are hoping to move quickly before people have time to react. We cannot let that happen. Since the Senate bill is based on the American Health Care Act, we know it is going to be bad for millions of people, especially those receiving Medicaid coverage. After you’ve called your senators and urged others to call as well, use the media to let the Senate know that you oppose their secret efforts to cuts and changes to Medicaid.
TAKE ACTION: Take twenty minutes to draft and submit a letter to the editor urging the Senate to reject cuts or changes to Medicaid, including ending the ACA’s Medicaid expansion. Use the June Action or our updated online alert to send a letter today. Be sure to mention your senators by name. If they already oppose the Senate bill (even though no one has seen it), thank them and tell them to stand firm. If they support it or are undecided, demand they stand up for the most vulnerable and oppose gutting Medicaid.
Conference FLASH SALE: Register by Thursday to Get Early Bird Discount
If you haven’t yet registered for the RESULTS International Conference, now if the time to do it. Between now and this Thursday, June 15, RESULTS volunteers can register for the Conference at the low Early Bird rate of only $150. This is a steal for DC Conferences of this size and you will surely get your money’s worth and more. Informative workshops, inspiring speakers, and the chance to speak truth directly to power with our Advocacy Day on Capitol Hill. You’ll want to be there and we need you there. Just go to www.resultsconference.org to register and when asked, enter discount code FLASHRVOL to get your $50 off. Register today!
And remember that first time attendees to our Conference can get a $50 discount off their registration fee. Use the discount code FIRSTIC17 to get the new attendee discount (note: only one discount per attendee is permitted).
Quick News
Remember to Sign Your Local RESULTS Group onto Fair Budget Letter. Our friends at the Coalition on Human Needs are still collecting signatures for their sign-on letter urging Congress to reject President Trump’s FY 2018 budget and pass a budget that ensures economic opportunity and security for all. Add your local RESULTS group’s name to the list of signers. The deadline to sign on is Monday, June 19. States where we especially need signatures are KY, MT, NV, ND, RI, SD, VT, and WY.
RESULTS Intro Call Tomorrow at 9:00 pm ET. If you or someone you know is looking to get involved in advocacy but needs more information before committing, invite them to our next RESULTS Introductory Call tomorrow, Wednesday, June 14 at 9:00 pm ET. We’ll also have one again on Friday, June 23 at 1:00 pm ET. Register for an upcoming Intro Call on the RESULTS website.
RESULTS Free Agents Meet Next Tuesday. Our monthly U.S. Poverty Free Agents Calls are next Tuesday, June 20 at 1:00 pm and 8:00 pm ET. If you want to get support in taking action with RESULTS but don’t live near a RESULTS U.S. Poverty group, please join the Free Agents. To participate, login online at: http://fuze.me/32256018 or dial in at (201) 479-4595, Meeting ID: 32256018#.
Upcoming Events
Go to the RESULTS Events Calendar to see a full list of RESULTS events. Also, find a list of the RESULTS U.S. Poverty staff with contact information on the RESULTS website.
Upcoming Congressional Recesses: House and Senate: July 3-7.
RESULTS U.S. Poverty National Webinar, Tuesday, June 13 at 8:00 pm ET. Participate at http://fuze.me/32255914 or (201) 479-4595, Meeting ID: 32255914#. Listen to previous webinars on our National Webinars page.
RESULTS Introductory Call, Wednesday, June 14 at 9:00 pm ET. If you want to learn more about RESULTS, register for an Intro Call on the RESULTS website.
RESULTS U.S. Poverty Free Agents Calls, Tuesday, June 20 at 1:00 pm and 8:00 pm ET. To participate, login at http://fuze.me/32256018 or dial by phone at (201) 479-4595, Meeting ID: 32256018#.
Independence Day Holiday, Tuesday, July 4. All RESULTS offices are closed. RESULTS offices will be open on Monday, July 3 but many staff persons will be on vacation that day.
RESULTS International Conference, Saturday, July 22 – Tuesday, July 25, 2017. Washington Court Hotel, Washington, DC. Register today!
If you have a question, comment or suggestion for the RESULTS/RESULTS Educational Fund Board, please e-mail them to RESULTS Grassroots Board Member Vanessa Garcia at [email protected]. You can view the most recently published minutes from Board meetings on the RESULTS website, as well as download RESULTS’ most recent Annual Report.