Now is the time to push for the expansion of Medicaid in North Carolina. Both the House and Senate have passed versions of a Medicaid expansion bill, and a final bill is very likely to come up for a vote this session.
Lobby Day will be a great opportunity to meet your legislators or members of their staffs, to introduce yourself so they will know who you are in future lobbying contacts. Between now and the end of March a number of state-wide groups will also be lobbying for Medicaid expansion, so we will be amplifying one another’s voices.
Join with fellow FCNCL participants and other groups also lobbying so that our voices will be heard! To register for the March 22 Lobby Day please click the link below. A Zoom lobby training session will be held at 7 pm March 15 – a link will be sent out to all registrants. Please RSVP for Lobby Day by February 27.
Details:
We will gather March 22 in the morning across from the Legislative Building (details will follow). Breakfast munchies will be supplied.
Lobby visits will be arranged by FCNCL. Maps and directions to legislative offices will be supplied. Please get your registration in ASAP, so we can schedule those visits.
FCNCL will supply a list of activities available that day – even if your representatives are not available, there is much to be gained by attending a hearing or meeting with other representatives.
A leave-behind handout will supply talking points for participants; it will be left with the legislator’s staff along with the names of those participating in the lobby meeting.
A Zoom training session at 7:00-8:30 pm, March 15, will offer advice for first-time and experienced lobbyists – for example, a personal story about the importance of health insurance is very useful!
FCNCL is committed to reducing barriers to attending Lobby Day, including help with transportation and overnight housing.
Letters to the editor: Consider penning a letter to the editor the Raleigh News and Observer and submit it HERE.
Background Information
Medicaid expansion would:
• Allow many of those in the “coverage gap” to have access to health care to improve the health of North Carolinians. Currently more than 600,000 working North Carolinians are unable to pay for private insurance but are not eligible for Medicaid.
• Improve infant mortality rates, which in North Carolina are among the highest in the country, and roughly twice as high for Black infants.
• Bring federal funds into North Carolina to pay for healthcare for lower-paid workers, similar to funding other states have received for years.
• Support rural hospitals and health care providers, helping to keep rural hospitals open.
For more information, see our Medicaid Expansion Fact Sheet HERE.
WE HOPE TO SEE YOU ON MARCH 22!
Hope You’ll Join Us
On Valentines Day, Nancy Walker, Sara White, and I drove to Raleigh to take part with others coalitions to support Medicaid Expansion. It was my first time in the Legislation Building (although I had been outside, protesting before). The three of us attended the Health Committee as well as the Finance Committee to witness the approval of the House Bill for Medicaid Expansion, very interesting and exciting. We also were able to stop in our legislators’ offices, spoke with our Senator for about 10 minutes, and talked with our Representative’s Assistant. It was eye-opening and a very positive experience.
Friends Committee on North Carolina Legislation will be hosting a lobby day (Audubon Society also lobbying that day) on March 22 to support bills that we have discerned to support Quaker values. I hope that many of you will join us for fellowship and taking an active role in our democracy.
Tim Lindeman, Clerk, FCNCL
Tim Lindeman, Sara White, Pam Schwingl, Nancy Walker