President Obama and administration officials are rallying religious
leaders to “spread the word” on new health care legislation to reinforce
public support and to raise awareness about the effects of new
insurance reforms.
In a Tuesday conference call, President Obama told various religious leaders, “Get out there and spread the word.”
“This is something that we’ll be able to look back on, just like we
do on Medicare and Social Security, as a cornerstone that improves the
security of millions of Americans,” the president commented, saying the
changes lower costs at the government level and for families and
businesses.
President Obama told faith leaders to treat the new law as settled
fact and to use their influence to convey that message to congregants,
Politico reports.
“The debate in Washington is over, the Affordable Care Act is now law
... I think all of you can be really important validators and trusted
resources for friends and neighbors, to help explain what’s now
available to them,” President Obama continued.
Joshua DuBois, director of the White House Office of Faith-based and
Community Partnerships, told call participants to use the resources
described in the call, including a website, door hangers and single-page
information sheets.
“We’ve got work to do,” commented DuBois, who also explained the “Patients’ Bill of Rights” to be implemented on Thursday.
The organization People Improving Communities through Organizing
(PICO) is reportedly planning to distribute 50,000 door hangers in
lower-income communities within the next two weeks. PICO regularly meets
with the administration and last week participated in an HHS-run call
for faith-based groups.
Participants in the conference call with President Obama included
National Council of Churches president Peg Chemberlin. She told Politico
that there has been some discussion about “the best way” to publicize
information on the health care law.
An administration official told Politico that the administration
believes community- and faith-based groups can help government action on
health care.
"They are reaching people every day in churches, synagogues, mosques,
and secular organizations. They can spread the word about these
things," the official said.
Other Obama administration participants in the Tuesday conference
call were Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius,
White House Office of Health Reform director Nancy-Ann DeParle, and
Assistant to the President for Special Products Stephanie Cutter.
The Health and Human Services Center for Faith-Based and Community
Partnerships organized the conference call. The director of the center
is Alexia Kelley, a co-founder of the Democratic-leaning group Catholics
in Alliance for the Common Good (CACG).
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and many other
religious pro-life advocates opposed the 2010 health care legislation on
the grounds that it provided inadequate restrictions on abortion
funding.
SIC: CNA/USA