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Dear Friends,

On April 12th of 2012, Governor Cuomo of New York State signed an Executive Order establishing a health exchange.  Now is the time for Governor Quinn to do the same for Illinois.

We are collecting 2,000 signatures over the next 2 weeks.  Pass this petition to your friends and neighbors.  We need to show our support for healthcare.

Tell Governor Quinn to establish a health exchange today!

The right wing is attacking us every day.  It’s time to stand up again and fight for Healthcare for America NOW!

Sign the petition today - Call on Governor Quinn to issue an Executive Order to establish a health exchange.

A key provision in the Affordable Cate Act is the creation of health benefits exchanges in each state by 2014. These Exchanges will operate as a marketplace for individuals and small businesses to compare and buy quality and affordable health insurance.

The creation of an Exchange for over 1 million Illinoisans is no small task. The fastest way to get this done is through an Executive Order.

Help over a million Illinoisans without affordable health care today. Sign our petition calling on Governor Quinn to establish a health exchange today!

Sincerely,

Lynda DeLaforgue

Citizen Action/Illinois

Tell Governor Quinn: We need a health exchange now!

by Walter J. Kendall III, Citizen Action/Illinois Board Member and Professor of Law, John Marshall Law School

Most of the attention given to the constitutional debate about the Affordable Care Act has been focused on the "individual mandate." People either must have or get health insurance or they will have to pay into the federal treasury an amount of money roughly comparable to the cost of minimum health insurance coverage. Opponents of the law argue that if the law is constitutional it would mean the federal government could make you buy broccoli.

Last week, Congressman Paul Ryan released the Republican's proposed 2013 federal budget. Their proposal would expand tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires, while pulling away critical Medicare and Social Security protections from the middle class. 

Attachment: 

Ryan Budget Fact Sheet

Smart Solutions Fact Sheet

For Immediate Release

February 4, 2012    

UPDATED February 10, 2012

From The Washington Times:

Eleven states, D.C. back Obama on health law

By Paige Winfield Cunningham

Friday, January 13, 2012

Eleven states and the District of Columbia are siding with the Obama administration in the legal battle over the constitutionality of the new health care law, as more than half the states prepare to challenge the law before the Supreme Court.

By William McNary, Co-Director Citizen Action/Illinois

Dr. King: Not Merely a Dreamer

It was almost a half a century ago that the momentous 1963 March on Washington took place. It was at this march where Dr. Martin Luther King delivered his most famous and celebrated speech; one of the best speeches ever given in American history. As we reflect on and commemorate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King this week, let us remember that he not only inspired us, but marched for his beliefs. He sat-in for his beliefs. In Alabama, he went to jail for his beliefs. In Chicago, he was hit in the head with a brick for his beliefs. And in Memphis on a hotel balcony, he was assassinated for his beliefs.

I’m merely pointing out that Dr. King was not just some idealistic dreamer; he fought to make his dreams a reality. He was a gallant fighter for civil rights and we all know that there would not be a Civil Rights Act or a Voting Rights Act without his leadership.

From the State Journal-Register:

From the Chicago Tribune, October 26:

Lawmakers override Quinn veto

smart grid becomes law

Citizen Action/Illinois' 2011 Annual Dinner was held Friday evening, September 9, at the Chicago Hilton and Towers.  Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White was honored with the 2011 Lerner/Egan Award for his decades of public service and tireless commitment to working families and to the public interest.