WASHINGTON, Sept. 9 San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom will be a special guest of President Barack Obama tonight for the President's historic speech on healthcare reform before a joint session of Congress and the nation.
Advertisement
As Co-Chair of the U.S. Conference of Mayors Healthcare Reform Task Force, Mayor Newsom is spearheading a bold campaign encouraging mayors around the country to urge Congress to pass comprehensive health care reform this year. Already, 141 cities across the country have signed on the U.S. Conference of Mayor's letter calling on Congress to pass comprehensive health care reform legislation.
Advertisement
During the Conference of Mayors Annual Meeting this past June, the Conference unanimously adopted policy in support of the Administration's health care reform principles. City governments spend billions of dollars to provide health coverage to millions of employees, dependents, and retirees, and rising health costs affect cities' ability to provide other city services.
"Mayors across America are joining together to ask our representatives to stand up to the special interests and act in America's best interests. We call on Congress to pass real health care reform that drives down costs and provides coverage for the uninsured. The future of our cities and our economic recovery depends on it," said Mayor Gavin Newsom. "In San Francisco we are proving that a public option works. We are covering the uninsured with quality care without negatively impacting the economy."
USCM CEO and Executive Director Tom Cochran said, "The Conference of Mayors is at the forefront of this debate. As the Chief Elected Official in their cities, Mayors, see first-hand the impact of rising health care costs on families, businesses and workers. These costs are unsustainable. Health care reform must protect families from bankruptcy or debt because of health care costs; guarantee choice of doctors and invest in prevention and wellness as well as restore the health care safety net so important to the most vulnerable in our cities."
The U.S. Conference of Mayors is the official nonpartisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or more. There are 1,139 such cities in the country today, each represented in the Conference by its chief elected official, the Mayor.
SOURCE U.S. Conference of Mayors
