Health Care Reform Rally draws about 500 People

Portland Press Herald Edward D. Murphy July 19, 2009 Speakers cite the individual impact of the cost of care; foes say the ability to select one's doctor could be lost. PORTLAND — About 500 Mainers on Saturday urged Congress to act quickly on health care reform, including a public option that would provide a government-backed alternative to private insurance. Supporters crowded into Monument Square and then marched to the Old Port, dogged by a small group of counterprotesters. A few shouting matches broke out between supporters and opponents of public health care, and at one point, the group of about 25 counterprotesters tried to drown out speakers with a chant of "patients' choice." Representatives of three of Maine's members of Congress spoke in support of health care reform, including one for U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, who is considered a crucial swing vote on the administration's reform package moving through Congress. Snowe's proxy, Portland City Councilor Cheryl Leeman, said her own battle with breast cancer convinced her that "the time is now" for health care reform. However, Snowe and U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, last week met with President Obama on the issue and suggested he back off his call for quick action on the reform measure. In the crowd, supporters of reform had their own stories of how health care isn't working for them. Mario Moretto, 23, of Brewer said he's been without health insurance for nine years, since his parents could no longer afford a policy. What if he gets sick? "I hope I get better," Moretto said. Moretto said that approach didn't work a few years ago when he put off getting treatment for an infected finger. The doctor he finally saw, Moretto said, told him that the finger might have required amputation if Moretto had waited much longer to get treatment. But opponents had their own stories. Brad Watts of Saco said his experience with federally provided health care for veterans has him convinced that greater government involvement isn't the way to go. Watts said he usually has to wait two months to get an appointment to see a doctor, and Maine is considered above average for veterans' health care. "If this is how we treat our veterans, are we really going to treat everyone else better?" Watts said. The counterrally was sponsored by the Maine Heritage Policy Center. Tarren Bragdon, chief executive officer of the conservative organization, said he opposes government-sponsored insurance because of the cost and concern that patients might lose the ability to choose their own doctors. Supporters, however, had numbers on their side Saturday in downtown Portland. The sponsors – including Change That Works, funded by the Service Employees International Union and other labor groups – bused in supporters from around the state. Speakers focused on the individual impact of the high cost of care and the risks of going without insurance, rather than focusing on the national costs. "We all get sick, and we all deserve some peace of mind knowing we can get better without bankrupting our families," said Maine House Speaker Hannah Pingree, D-North Haven. "We are at the point of begging, which is something we should not have to do in a nation as wealthy as ours," she said.