I'm glad to see this. It's a war and we will take any allies now. Yes, they have their own interests to protect, but reform in health care is worth doing. For the 48 million and the rest of us.
A new coalition called Americans for Stable Quality Care--which includes the American Medical Association, PhRMA, as well as more predictable groups like SEIU and FamiliesUSA--will launch their first pro-reform ad later today as part of an August recess campaign that's expected to cost $12 million.
TPM
More, after the fold.
Text of the first ad:
What DOES health insurance reform mean for you? It means you can’t be denied coverage for a pre-existing condition, or dropped if you get sick. It means putting health-care decisions in the hands of you and your doctor. It means lower costs, a cap on out-of-pocket expenses, tough new rules to cut waste and red tape, and a focus on PREVENTING illness before it strikes. So what does health insurance reform really mean? Quality, affordable care you can count on.
More details from Politico:
A new coalition has been formed, funded largely by PhRMA, that could spend tens of millions of dollars -- in just a couple months – to give the White House air cover. The group plans to drop around $12 million over the congressional recess, and that’s just a start. THIS GROUP IS LIKELY TO BE THE BIGGEST PRO-REFORM SPENDER.
snip
The new group, Americans for Stable Quality Care (www.stablequalitycare.com), includes some odd bedfellows: the AMA, FamiliesUSA, the Federation of American Hospitals, PhRMA and SEIU.
PhRMA’s participation is key, because the group has promised to kick in as much as $150 million on advertising and grassroots activity to help pass the plan. The debut ad is mean to shore up support among the conservative House Blue Dog Democrats, and target swing senators. So it’s airing in Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Indiana, Louisiana, Maine, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, South Dakota and Virginia.
Politico
And Obama's town halls provide an opportunity to turn the tide on reform:
But with polls showing Americans nearly evenly split on the question of how the president is handling the health care issue, the White House strategy is to put its chief salesman on the road consistently throughout the summer break.
Before the end of the month, Obama will attend at least three hour-long question-and-answer sessions aimed at countering what he considers misunderstanding and misinformation.
snip
"It's incredibly important to talk about this outside the Beltway echo chamber, removing the filters of talk radio and the blogosphere to get to what's really out there," said Jim Dau, a spokesman for the seniors organization AARP. "Let's just get the facts. If you still disagree, that's fine, but make sure it's on the facts and not on the misinformation out there."
Chicago Tribune
It's a war, and if PhRMA is fighting for the reform, then we can fight together. Allies today, but not forever.
Update I: Axelrod email I just received. The White House is gearing up:
This is probably one of the longest emails I’ve ever sent, but it could be the most important.
Across the country we are seeing vigorous debate about health insurance reform. Unfortunately, some of the old tactics we know so well are back — even the viral emails that fly unchecked and under the radar, spreading all sorts of lies and distortions.
As President Obama said at the town hall in New Hampshire, "where we do disagree, let's disagree over things that are real, not these wild misrepresentations that bear no resemblance to anything that's actually been proposed."
So let’s start a chain email of our own. At the end of my email, you’ll find a lot of information about health insurance reform, distilled into 8 ways reform provides security and stability to those with or without coverage, 8 common myths about reform and 8 reasons we need health insurance reform now.
Right now, someone you know probably has a question about reform that could be answered by what’s below. So what are you waiting for? Forward this email.
Thanks,
David
David Axelrod
Senior Adviser to the President
Many answers to the lies are included along with the pro-message.
Update II: People have asked me to add something about the purported "deal" made between Obama and PhRMA, but that is not the point of this diary. I am sceptical of that deal, but what's done is done. This is the road we are on. Reform is hanging in the balance. There is a point where a bill is so bad that it is better to see it defeated. Coops is where I draw the line. Others draw it somewhere else. My view now is that passing the reform, as tepid as it is, is better than losing. These ads help. Were they worth what Obama gave up? Hard to know. But they way things have been going, we need this ad campaign. Defeating the extreme right and insurance companies is something, even if it far from what is needed. We have to change the direction of America. This reform is a start. And there are more battles to come.
I know some disagree. I am all for Eve's and Jane's campaign with the Progressive Caucus. We can agitate and support at the same time.