Though the results of the national election were razor thin by my assessment, I think the turn toward authoritarianism and away from more pluralistic public policy making is troubling for all of society, not just those of us advocating for universal single payer healthcare. This billionaire lead DOGE advisory organization being formed will undoubtedly propose further monopoly of all aspects of our society.
Public statements about the austerity to be visited on broadly defined segments of our society, will only lead to further upheaval and division. Without extreme popular push back I feel we're in for a very fraught future in total.
Health Care For All Ohioans / SPANOhio.org has contracted with the Action Network to help our organizing and outreach. It is evident that the majority of the public understand the issue and support a public financing solution, however, getting that message more widely understood among the public is hampered not only by political leaders but also the news media whose revenue is dependent on the same economic monopolists we struggle against every day, namely Big Insurance and Big Pharma. Whenever we do tabling at festivals and other public events, those we talk to all have stories of financial hardship and even death resulting from exorbitant costs associated with care access.
We are also undertaking a reassessment of our organization with the goal of developing a new strategic plan for the years ahead. This process has a target date of April to present for approval by our state council.
The State elections have been somewhat more positive with GA members who are somewhat younger and have a deeper understanding of the dysfunction we fight against. Sadly the gerrymandered nature of our representative districts wasn't changed and I fear the majority will move rapidly in the lame duck to slam the door on any reform.
Our past leadership conducted outreach to other social and economic justice organizations. More of this needs to be pursued. Further movement building and cross participation between groups can help.
If there was one thing that local activists might do, is to simply invite presentations about our legislation so that broader understanding/activism might be encouraged.
Funding is always an issue so at these presentations if thousands of people tossed in a couple of bucks every month to maintain information systems and continue outreach we could do more to advance this issue.
Recently on a zoom call one of our newly elected GA members, who will sign onto our legislation, suggested getting 1000 or more people to the Capitol at the time of the next reintroduction.
Sometimes it's just about showing up!
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Healthcare for All Ohioans (SPAN Ohio) is a non-profit that has been championing universal healthcare in Ohio for over 20 years. We focus on educating the public and supporting Single-Payer Action Network Ohio, our allied 501(c)4 organization. Our core mission is achieving healthcare reform in Ohio and the United States, guaranteeing healthcare access for all residents.
