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Human RIghts at the ConCon: It’s Happening Today

November 9, 2006 By annem

If you have another minute call 617-722-2000 to leave the same message for your own state Senator and Representative “VOTE YES on Health Care and no on marriage discrimination today”.

The health amendment seeks to make quality, affordable health care a permanent right for all Massachusetts residents and will provide a tool to fix the bad parts of the new state health reform law.

More background on these 2 Human Rights issues:

The Health Care Amendment Campaign website has links to find who are your state Senator and Representative.

In addition to health care rights the legislature has a constitutional amendment in front of it for its first of two required ConCon votes that bans equal marriage and writes inequality into our constitution. This ban could affect benefits of same sex couples across the state and reverse the important step forward taken by Massachusetts on this issue of human rights and equality. Together we can stop this ban on equal marriage from moving forward

The citizens Health Care Amendment already got its first YES VOTE by over 50 legislators (153 to be precise) in the 2004 ConCon. It needs one more successful ConCon vote to be place on the 2008 statewide ballot. Iis not called for a vote during this session’s Constitutional Convention, the initiative might be dead.

Language of the proposed Health Care Amendment: Upon ratification of this amendment and thereafter, it shall be the obligation and duty of the Legislature and executive officials, on behalf of the Commonwealth, to enact and implement such laws, subject to approval by the voters at a statewide election, as will ensure that no Massachusetts resident lacks comprehensive, affordable and equitably financed health insurance coverage for all medically necessary preventive, acute and chronic health care and mental health care services, prescription drugs and devices.

For more details, lists of the 130 endorsing organizations, thousands of individuals and the rationale for this historic citizen-led campaign to make health care a permaent right for all, visit the Health Care Amendment Campaign

Thank you from the front-line clinicians, health educators and other advocates at the Alliance to Defend Health Care and the hundreds of thousands of people across the sate who support this goal.

written by: Ann Eldridge Malone, RN, MSN, community health nurse, clinical educator, staff at the Alliance and all-around social justice activist.
 

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Filed Under: User Tagged With: contitutional-amendments, equality, health-care, human-rights, marriage-equality, politics

Comments

  1. centralmassdad says

    November 9, 2006 at 6:14 pm

    I’m told that it is offensive for individual rights to be subject to a vote.

    • gary says

      November 9, 2006 at 6:31 pm

      a judge might find language within the Constitution that each citizen already has the right to medical care.

      <

      p>
      But, even with a really, really smart and superior judge’s opinion, a vote would clinch it for me.

      <

      p>

      Article I. All men are born free and equal, and have certain natural, essential, and unalienable rights; among which may be reckoned the right of enjoying and defending their lives and liberties; that of acquiring, possessing, and protecting property; in fine, that of seeking and obtaining their safety and happiness.

      • centralmassdad says

        November 10, 2006 at 6:36 am

        Then again, maybe that emanation is just last night’s burrito.

    • annem says

      November 10, 2006 at 1:57 pm

      you (CentralMassDad) say ” I’m told that it is offensive for individual rights to be subject to a vote.”

      <

      p>
      does that mean it is what you believe or it is what you are “told”, insinuating that you don’t appreciate being dictated to in that fashion?  it’s not clear and could be either.

      <

      p>
      btw the preamble to our state constitution directs the citizens to amend our body politic if so needed.  this includes the state constitutiona and the rights and protections it affords to each of us.

      <

      p>
      article 48 of said constitution establishes the mechanism, the constitutional process, for a citizen initiatve to proceed with the aim to amend the state constitution.

      <

      p>
      bearing witness to increasing numbers of premature deaths,  severe preventable pain and suffering, and obscene levels of waste and profiteering in our health system, four years ago many front-line clinicians, folks who are uninsured and others struggling with unmet health needs and sky-high costs, and helaht policy-makers identified a need to establish a right to comprehensive affordable health care.

      <

      p>
      over 70,000 voters signed the initiative petition,  over 80% stated support for the amendment in a poll taken before the May 2006 ConCon.  FYI May 11 was but one in a string of ConCon’s this session in which the health care amendment has been denied its constitutionally required second concon vote.  an up or down vote on its merits.

      <

      p>
      do you disagree that it deserves a 2nd vote?

      • centralmassdad says

        November 13, 2006 at 10:50 am

        While I’m not sure about your amendment (I don’t know a thing about it) vote, rahther than a sandbag.

        <

        p>
        My comment was a toungue in cheek reference to the silly rationalizations of the process on the gay marriage amendment.

        • annem says

          November 13, 2006 at 9:16 pm

          read my first line or two to you; isn’t it clear that’s what i was asking?

          <

          p>
          so, CMD, do you not “know a thing about it” b/c you don’t have time to learn about it or you don’t want to/ care to (is that the same thing?)

          <

          p>
          if you diecide to learn about it, a place to start is the campaign website and also our site at the Alliance to Defend Health Care which talks about the hc amendment plus we have lots of critiques etc on the new MA health care law too.

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