Health providers, patients, community activists plan Oct. 20 presentation to Sen. Sinema at Tucson office

Health providers, patients and community activists will share stories that they say highlight Arizonans’ need for  U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) to support robust Medicare drug price negotiation and benefits expansion in the Democrats’ budget reconciliation bill. Advocates will deliver a letter signed by Public Citizen and more than 20 Arizona labor, health and community organizations to Sinema, who is a key holdout vote needed to advance these health care policies in the Build Back Better package.

Seventy-three percent of Arizona voters say they support giving Medicare the power to lower prescription drug prices for all Americans. That number rises to 79 percent after the Arizona voters hear that savings from lower drug prices would be used to provide health care benefits for hearing, dental and vision to seniors on Medicare and lower insurance premiums for millions more. Lowering Medicare to age 60 would provide quality insurance to 439,000 Arizonans between 60 and 65 and do the same for 20 million other Americans.

The organizations’ letter follows a letter from 100-plus national groups that called on Congressional leadership to include Medicare drug price negotiation and expansion in the package. 

This is masked event at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 20 will feature Dr. Josh Freeman, retired family physician, author of Health, Medicine and Justice: Designing a fair and equitable healthcare system; Monica Silva, emergency room nurse at St. Mary’s Hospital; Patrick Diehl, AZ Medicare for All Coalition; Paul Stapleton-Smith, Arizona Democratic Party Progressive Council; and Buzz Davis, Veterans for Peace Chapter 13.

The event will be at Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s Tucson office, 20 E. Ochoa St.

Co-sponsoring organizations are: AZ Medicare for All Coalition, Arizona Democratic Party Progressive Council, Arizona Public Health Coalition, Central Arizona Inez Casiano NOW, Central Arizona National Lawyers Guild, Progressive Democrats of America - Arizona, Public Citizen, Sunrise Movement Tempe and Veterans for Peace Tucson.