Take note, elected officials: working people are organized and ready to mobilize for our healthcare! With a President who took office insistent on dismantling the Affordable Care Act (also known as Obamacare) without any feasible replacement option, California’s working people didn’t waste a second to take action. Rain or shine, working people have turned out in record numbers throughout the state to send a clear message to their elected officials: don’t cut our healthcare!

In the two weeks since Trump’s inauguration and his Executive Order urging agencies to “ease the burden of the ACA”, thousands have joined dozens of actions across the state. They are showing no signs of slowing down. And it’s working!

In the past two weeks working people have:

• Plastered Rep McCarthy’s Bakersfield office with signs and letters urging the House Majority Leader to protect their access to healthcare. Over 1,000 working people got on a bus at the crack of dawn to join hundreds of McCarthy’s local constituents to share concerns with him about their access to quality, affordable healthcare. His office’s response? Locked doors and disrespect for senior citizens, working people, and healthcare providers on their doorstep. Watch the video below with a roundup of news coverage from the action on January 27!

• Testified during an open to the public meeting on soaring healthcare costs. Over a thousand working people attended the first open-to-the-public meeting on the effects of rising healthcare costs. The meeting, made possible thanks to Senate Bill 546, gave an unprecedented forum for folks to testify before state officials and insurers on how health coverage price increases hurt them and their families. A report on key findings thanks to SB 546 is available here. Folks also shared their stories on social media with the hashtags: #WhoTookMyRaise, #WhatsPharmaHiding, and #ProtectOurHealthcare

• Maxed out capacity at Rep McClintock’s Town Hall. His Town Hall had room for 200, and over 1,000 people showed up! Some had driven for hours to voice their concerns to their Congressperson. During the Town Hall, folks spoke passionately about their concerns over loss of healthcare and several of the recent Executive Orders signed by President Trump. After fielding only 12 questions, McClintock had a “needless” police escort help him to his car.

Stay tuned for more!