Health Care for All Oregon board members gather in La Grande for a night of education and entertainment
Sep. 29—LA GRANDE — A drive to bring universal health care to Oregon has been gaining momentum across the state.
Health Care for all Oregon board members are traveling to La Grande from across the state to meet with the Union County chapter at an event open to all on Saturday, Oct. 1, in La Grande.
"We want to hear from the community and allow the community voice to be brought forward. This is one way we can hear from people and actually steer the community toward bringing their voices into creating the health care system that they want to have," Health Care for All Oregon President Tom Sincic said.
Health Care for All Oregon is a statewide movement of more than 130 members and endorsing organizations that advocate for a single-payer public system to cover the costs of essential health care. Sincic said the group is seeking a change in the health care system in order to abolish the current issues around affordability and poor outcomes.
"We've been working for a number of years to get health care for everyone," Health Care for All Oregon board member and La Grande local Kate Pfister-Minogue said. "Our slogan is 'Everybody in, nobody out.'"
The Oct. 1 evening event will be a mixture of entertainment and education. After introductions, the event will open with time for discussion and questions. Board members want to hear local stories and health care concerns. The group will also address questions about what universal health care means for people, businesses and the state.
"We want to create a sharing atmosphere," Pfister-Minogue said. "We'll share some snacks, drinks, music and conversation."
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Local musicians — who for the evening have taken the name Holly and the Health Care Ramblers — are playing at the event. Food and refreshments will also be provided.
Pfister-Minogue said the gathering also will provide an update on the joint task force. The Oregon Legislature took a big step toward developing single-payer health care in 2019 when it passed Senate Bill 770, which established a task force on universal health care. The task force has 14 voting members, including Dwight Dill, of La Grande.
"Our charge was to create a universal health care plan for the state of Oregon," Dill said.
The plan would cover everyone living in Oregon and include vision, dental and mental health, said Dill. Universal health care would expand people's choice of providers as they would no longer be bound by insurance network distinctions.
It will be up to the Legislature to determine how the plan is funded, but the joint task force recommends an increase in payroll and income tax. Dill said that people would pay less for health care overall, as there would no longer be premiums, copays, deductibles or out-of-pocket costs.
"I think we've come up with a pretty comprehensive plan," Dill said.
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Isabella Crowley is a reporter for The Observer. Contact her at 541-624-6014 or icrowley@lagrandeobserver.com.
