Home Uninsured Racism Medicare Medicaid/Medi-Cal Mental Health Healthcare Reform War Economics All Articles Search
2003-11-16 -- Anti-Tommy Thompson activity at
APHA
Report on anti-Tommy Thompson activity at the American Public Health
Association (APHA)
About fifteen people leafletted people attending the Opening Ceremony
of APHA today (Sun, 11-16-03) Tommy Thompsondid not talk, but
people were still angry that APHA should have anything to do with him.
There were not enough people for a demonstration or picket line, but
we distributed 2,000 leaftets (text below) which also had simple
slogans on the opposite side, denouncing Medicare privatization,
Medicaid Block-Granting, Bioweapons Labs, Drug Prices, lack of
affordable AIDS medicines, and Thompson himself. People were very
supportive, we had many good conversations, and many came to us asking
for a sign with a particular slogan on the back, having seen other
people carrying them. An interesting sidelight was that a couple of
insiders are now saying it was Thompson's idea to talk, not APHA's,
but Thompson then changed his mind. Another insider said, No, APHA
did invite Thompson.
Bay Area people may be interested to know about Willie Brown's
welcoming remarks to the Opening Ceremony. According to a reputable
friend, Brown told the huge audience that San Francisco's homeless
were unusual, and beg for more money than homeless in other cities so
they could buy cafe lattes. He said he and an associate were stopped
giving money to a homeless person, when the homeless person's cell
phone rang. Brown said he and his associate didn't have a cell phone,
so why should the homeless person. Apparently the audience was too
stunned by Brown's crudeness to respond.
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
CRISIS IN HEALTH, CRISIS IN APHA
PLEASE HOLD UP THIS SIGN (ON OPPOSITE SIDE) DURING THE CEREMONY
Every year's meeting of the APHA seems to taking place under greater
crisis to public health and the nation's health in general. On one
hand, we are under severe attack:
* More people are losing coverage and healthcare costs are
increasing, yet war and tax cuts to the rich have produced the worst
budget deficits in fifty years.
* Twenty million will reach retirement in the next decade, yet
government's response is to privatize Medicare, and establish
"competition" and "premium support," a voucher plan where fewer,
sicker, and more expensive seniors would be stranded in the original
plan with less funding, ultimately killing it. Also. government plans
for automatic increases in premiums, etc when an unacceptable
proportion of Medicare funding comes from general US revenues.
* More people than ever will need Medicaid, yet government's
response is to convert Medicaid from an entitlement program to a
severely capped block grant program, that absolves federal
responsibility for eligibility and benefits.
* There will be more demand on safety-net hospitals, yet the
government's response is to decrease the Medicaid "upper payment
limit" until safety-net hospitals get no funds for uncompensated care.
* Public Health infrastructure and staffing is crumbling in many
areas, yet government's response is to bribe us with anti-bioterrorism
programs which leave many districts with less money, and which
endanger the public with a smallpox vaccination program and plans for
bioweapons labs in populated areas.
* Mental health treatment is so scarce that one in five
prisoners in jails are mentally ill, yet mental health and substance
abuse treatment are often preferentially cut to balance deficits.
* AIDS, HIV, and other STDs reach frightening proportions,
particularly in minority communities and underdeveloped countries, yet
government's response is to inhibit preventative programs and
research, protect the drug industry, and barely fund programs.
* Union health plans have been ravaged, particularly in
manufacturing and for retirees, under corporate restructuring and
consolidation plans, often government sponsored.
On the other hand, people are responding to these attacks:
* Millions of healthworkers and patients are demanding
legislation establishing the right to healthcare and eliminating 43
million uninsured by providing universal, single-tier, government-paid
healthcare, with provisions to eliminate private healthcare in 15
years.
* Well over a hundred thousand workers have struck for health
benefits this year in grocery, transit, janitorial, phone, and
healthcare, with near-strikes in basic industries.
* Health workers refused to endanger themselves, patients, and
families, by opposing the smallpox vaccination program in the absence
of any evidence that a bioattack was imminent.
* Residents of Davis CA put up a huge resistance to construction
of a Level 4 Bioweapons Lab that would have investigated some of the
most dangerous diseases known.
* Retireees were arrested in the offices of a Senator promoting
Medicare privatization.
We are meeting in a period of tremendous collision of people's needs
and aspirations versus corporate needs and demands. The movement to
end this disgraceful situation will involve a tremendous fight. As
Quentin Young said, getting good healthcare will be as big a
struggle as civil rights. Now, as then, we will be called on to
challenge government rule and political trickery at all levels from
Congress to the streets.
We demand that the APHA leadership respond to members' needs and the
public's needs for a strong defense of public health. Our lives
depend on it.
Inviting HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson, who has led all of the
government's attacks on public health, welfare, and public education,
as an Opening Ceremony speaker sends the message that public health
will betray the people who depend on us, and partner with whatever
obscene plans the government and its corporate backers have in store.
APHA leadership must also support its members' resolutions against the
war and for independence of public health from Homeland Security.
(Come to Hearing Group D on Sunday, 3 PM to give support.)
Please contact us: NoRidgeAPHA NoRidgeAPHA@yahoogroups.com