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Take Action Call your legislators and let them know that Oregonians want health care reform that doesn't increase costs for middle-class Oregonians, helps everyone attain the coverage they need, and includes a robust public option! Keep reading for updates on where the healthcare reform bills are at, and how long we think it will be before the final vote. Call 1-877-3-AFL-CIO and they'll help direct you to your legislators. Oregon AFL-CIO Convention Sunday Night... As plans for the convention move forward and speakers start to fall in place, we have a few names that we can announce. Delegates: we hope you get there early. Bend union members: even if you're not a delegate come by for the Welcome Party! Sunday evening we'll be having our Welcome Party. Guests will have the first opportunity to donate to our COPE fund and receive the new convention t-shirts (where it Monday!). They'll also hear from hear from House Majority Leader Mary Nolan and AFL-CIO Western Region Campaign Director David Gregory. Stick around, because keynoting the evening is political comedian Carl Wolfson. You might know Carl from his various comedy performances on national TV shows in the 80s and 90s, his more recent performances at events around Portland, or his daily show on KPOJ (tune in weekday mornings from 6-9am!). We can't wait to see you there! In Other News... Healthcare - Moving Forward, One Bill at a Time The Senate Finance Committee is expected to vote on Senator Baucus' healthcare reform bill late this week. Once that bill passes it will be combined with the more comprehensive Senate HELP Committee bill. It is crucial that our Senators know that we need the important pieces of the HELP bill, like a public option, and employer contributions to healthcare costs, included in the combined Senate bill! Once those bills are combined the full Senate will vote on the compromise bill, which could be amended even further on the Senate floor. Meanwhile, the House will be voting in the next few weeks on their healthcare reform bill. After the Senate and House pass their respective bills, both versions will be sent to a conference committee to be combined - another place where it is important that the more comprehensive pieces of reform are moved into the final bill. We'll keep you updated with more details as the bills move forward. Right now our Congressmen aren't giving us a firm date, but we hope to see a final version of the bill around Thanksgiving. An Award for Standing Up and Standing Out Last year the Oregon Food Bank took a stand that took some courage - they decided to come out against Measure 64 (remember that ballot measure that would have made it illegal for public sector union members to get their dues money deducted from their paychecks? It also would have had crippling affects on charities throughout the state). Although Measure 64 would have done significant damage to the Food Bank officially taking a position against the measure was outside of the realm of their regular political activity, and the Board wasn't sure it was a stand they wanted to make. Earlier this week the Food Bank was recognized for their courage in standing up for charities across Oregon and taking a stand against Measure 64 - a stand that significantly helped the campaign to defeat that measure - at the Bus Project's Wheelie Awards. Thank you, Oregon Food Bank, and congratulations! We look forward to working with you as we fight back other ballot measure that are bad for Oregon in the future! The Weekly Update is created by the Oregon AFL-CIO. President: Tom Chamberlain |
