According to a poll described in the St. Louis Post Dispatch (Sunday, July 25,) Prop C will pass with a comfortable margin on August 3. Prop C was put on the ballot by the right-wing extremists in charge of the state legislature as a way to further erode popular support for President Obama and the progressives in our Congress. Besides being unconstitutional, "opting out" of federal health/insurance reform programs is just plain stupid. Everyone needs health insurance. The Patient Protection and Affordable Health Care Act passed by Congress this spring will make it possible for everyone to have insurance within three years. And there are immediate benefits such as group insurance for people with pre-existing conditions.

Jobs with Justice has an excellent summary - easy to print out and make copies. (see below)

There have also been several good letters to the editor about why we should vote NO on Prop C. One is from the president of the Missouri Hospital Association. Hospitals want people to have insurance so they will get medical care in doctors' offices rather than waiting until they're at death's door and coming to the ER for care. (see below)

Another letter says the same thing the hospital assn says but in less elegant language, calling people who choose not to get insurance "freeloaders." Once the pools are in place for low-income people to get insurance, there will be no excuse for not having it. We expect people to have car insurance if they crash into us. Banks and mortgage companies expect us to have house insurance. It's time for everyone to have health insurance. AND IT'S TIME FOR US TO TAKE THE INITIATIVE AND TELL 100 OTHER PEOPLE TO VOTE NO ON PROP C.

We can shake our heads and give up, or we can get to work educating voters.

I'm taking 100 copies of the JwJ brochure with me to SW Missouri this week. If you have friends, relatives in rural Missouri, that's where we need to target our efforts.

From Jobs with Justice:

On August 3, Missourians are scheduled to vote on Proposition C. The wording and fiscal note of this Proposition on the ballot are in need of explanation. The proposition poses two questions but voters may only answer once to both! The first question asks voters if Missouri law should be amended to deny (any?) government the authority to penalize citizens for refusing to purchase private health insurance or for paying directly for their health care services. The second question asks whether Missouri law should be modified with respect to the requirements for involuntary liquidation of certain insurance companies. The two propositions have no relationship except that they both deal with insurance. Yet, only one answer to both is permitted.

Here's a leaflet you can download, print, send to your lists, use to educate voters between now and August 3.

http://www.mojwj.org/no-on-prop-c

Joan Suarez

Saint Louis Jobs With Justice

From Letters to the Editor, St. L Post Dispatch

Prop. C would continue health care cost shifts

Before voting on Proposition C on Aug. 3, you may want to learn about its potential consequences. Your head and heart may disagree.
Proposition C's sponsors say the referendum's intent is to force a confrontation on states' rights and the 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. They want voters to help them send a message to Congress and the president about health care reform.
Here's what proponents don't say: The message they are asking you to send could have real consequences for your wallet and your community.
Supporters of Proposition C call the measure the "Health Care Freedom Act." Proposition C would allow those who can afford to purchase insurance the choice of not buying it. At the same time, Proposition C would force health service providers to continue to make up the costs of the uninsured by charging more to those who have insurance. So, the freedom it protects is the freedom not to take responsibility for the costs and risks of being uninsured. Ultimately, those risks — and the costs — are shifted to the rest of us.
Hospitals are required by law and driven by mission to provide necessary care in their emergency departments. This care is provided without respect to insurance coverage. The cost of providing this care has been borne in part by patients who have insurance and support from federal payments.
Hospitals historically have supported expanded health insurance coverage because when individuals have health insurance, they are more likely to seek needed care earlier and in the most appropriate care venue — making patients healthier and reducing health care costs.
Proposition C would reinforce a broken system. More than 700,000 Missourians don't have health insurance. The state's hospitals spent more than $830 million in 2008 providing care for these individuals. Under Proposition C, the cost shifts will continue.
Proposition C comes down to a choice. If you believe that purchasing health insurance is a decision each citizen has a right to make, you may support Proposition C. However, if you believe it is unfair for Missourians who pay for health insurance to pay higher insurance premiums to cover the cost of care for those who decide not to buy insurance, you may want to reject the proposal.
There's an old saying that "freedom isn't free." Proposition C could make it a lot cheaper for health insurance free riders. That's a freedom they'll be earning with your money.

Herb B. Kuhn • Jefferson City

President and CEO, Missouri Hospital Association

http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/columns/the-platform/article_481f6ca2-ebaf-5871-9181-0dc892da4276.html?mode=story