SustiNet Day at the Capitol

Wednesday was SustiNet Day at the Capitol, where hundreds of supporters gathered to show they are in favor of SustiNet and health care reform. Participants wore red t-shirts from the healthcare4every1 campaign with the campaign’s logo on the front and “SustiNet: Health Care We Can Count on” printed on the back. Participants sat in the gallery while the House of Representatives was in session or held signs spelling out “SustiNet HB 6600” in strategic locations (like by the escalator from the LOB to the Capitol).

I delivered cards signed by constituents in support of SustiNet to their Republican Senators, who were in caucus. While waiting for the Senators to come out of the caucus room, I met people who were new to the fight for universal health care. One woman had been uninsured for over ten years and finally got a job at Home Depot so she could get health insurance through them. Another young woman, a student from Massachusetts, is paying $2000 a month for individual coverage so it will cover her pre-existing condition. Since she isn’t a CT resident, she isn’t eligible for the high-risk pool. When she moves back to MA, she will be eligible for some sort of subsidy to bring her costs down significantly. When we were told that the Republican Senators had all left and were no longer in caucus, we delivered the cards to their offices in the LOB.

A rally was held on the north steps of the Capitol, where Juan Figueroa (President of the Universal Health Care Foundation), John Olson (President of the CT AFL-CIO), and the Reverend Shelley Copeland said a few words. This was followed by a silent march through the Capitol, which passed through the gallery of the House. I think we were definitely visible to legislators and others at the Capitol.
Jen Ramirez