Hundreds March For A Public Option
by MEREDITH TRAINA | wpix.com

8:48 p.m. EST, February 20, 2010
NEW YORK (WPIX)—
Hundreds of New Yorkers marched across the Brooklyn Bridge Saturday to protest those who oppose President Obama's health care overhaul.

The collection of activist groups highlighted what they say is the unacceptable costs of delaying health care.

"Last week, we heard Dick Cheney on the Sunday talk shows talking up the tragedy of the attack on 9/11 and how horrible it was that 3000 lives were horribly lost because of terrorism," said David Braun, a member of MoveOn, one of the groups in the coalition. "Well, our government needs another wake-up call, because 45,000 people die EVERY YEAR in this country simply because they lack access to affordable health insurance. The scale of this tragic loss of life is hard to grasp -- it's like losing the 3000 people we lost on 9/11, only we're losing them 15 times a year! But what's even HARDER to grasp is why this is allowed to stand."

In a press release Saturday, MoveOn.org blamed republicans -- through lies, fear, intimidation, false patriotism, and smear campaigns -- with endangering the lives of thousands of Americans by placing affordable health care out of reach.

The organization cited startling facts, pointing out that bankruptcies in countries like France, Germany and England are rarely due to health care costs. In the U.S., however, 62% of all bankruptcies are the result of Americans not having access to affordable health care -- that's about 2,547 claims each day.

Following the march, protestors rallied in front of the offices of the health care giant, Wellpoint, where they demanded restoration of the public option. They argued that free market competition would be enhanced by a robust public health insurance option, expansion of Medicare, and the removal of other barriers standing between Americans and their doctors.

The group also commended Senators Schumer and Gillibrand for their recent commitment to pass the public option through the reconciliation process.