The Time to Reform Health Care is Now

Today I joined Texans across the state as part of a national day of action to urge members of Congress to continue their work to deliver needed federal health reform legislation for Texas families. At events in six cities throughout the state, participants outlined the impact that our current health care system is having on every day Texans.

It is necessary that we push for changes in a system that has left 45 million Americans and 6 million Texans without health care. As the state with the highest number of uninsured residents, including 1.5 million uninsured children, doing nothing is not an option. The only people that benefit from our current system are the insurance companies who have raked in excessive profits that they don't deserve and that we all pay for.

Governor Rick Perry last week said that he might consider invoking states rights to resist any federal health reform legislation. Governor Perry's abysmal record on health care makes him a poor spokesman for a serious conversation about health reform; under his watch:

• Texans have seen their private health insurance costs go up 87 percent;
• Texas continues to lead the nation with the highest percentage of children and working families without health insurance;
• Texas slashed Medicaid and CHIP funding, shifting those costs to local county governments and public hospitals forcing local property tax payers to pick up the bill;
• Obesity, chronic disease and other public health problems continue to plague Texas families

And yesterday, Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison said of current health legislation in Congress: "[E]verything about the bill is counter intuitive."

Federal health reform legislation is centered on preventive care and will lower costs for all Americans. It will increase patient choice of doctor, and will keep insurance companies from denying coverage for pre-existing conditions. What's counter-intuitive is for members of Congress to delay or obstruct common-sense efforts to reform health care in this country.

Please contact your member of Congress and urge him or her to support necessary health reform that our country needs. The time to close the gap of the uninsured and underinsured is now. (Click here to find out who represents you).

I will continue to keep you updated on this policy matter.