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Oklahoma County Democrats on health care Oklahoma County Democrats expressed their support for health care reform at a press conference, but did not specify which type of new system they support. The event took place on Thursday Aug. 20 at the Oklahoma State Capitol. Watch

Oklahoma County Democrats urged passage of healthcare reform legislation Thursday at the Capitol, stating healthcare should be available and affordable for every citizen.

Top quality hospitals, doctors and health professionals already exist in Oklahoma, but the goal of legislation is to make that care available to everyone, said Katherine Scheirman, American College of Physicians fellow and regional director of Doctors for America. She said 20 percent of Oklahoma’s 5th District citizens are without health coverage.

“The proposals on the table for healthcare reform are common sense, mainstream ideas for making healthcare more affordable and available,” Scheirman said. “You rarely hear these proposals actually talked about, because they are so reasonable that it is hard to argue with them.”

According to a Committee on Energy and Commerce analysis, Oklahoma saw 1,300 healthcare-related bankruptcies in 2008, caused primarily by healthcare costs not covered by insurance. It states the bill caps out-of-pocket expenses at $10,000 per year, providing health insurance for almost every American.

The legislation will control healthcare inflation to solve long-term deficit problems, Tom Guild, party secretary, said.

“We think that we will get a good public option out of this,” Guild said. “We think we will have a good bill that will allow their health to be covered.”

Scheirman said in addition to bringing health care to the uninsured, the proposal would not affect those already covered under a government health insurance program, and would add new consumer protections, such as eliminating coverage denial for pre-existing conditions, for those currently covered under employer insurance.

“If you don’t have insurance through your job, or if you lose your insurance because your change or lose a job, you will be able to have a choice through an exchange where you can choose a health plan from a range of private insurers, but can’t be excluded for trivial reasons, and can’t be denied healthcare after years of paying premiums,” Scheirman said.

Party Chairman Al Lindley said most people who have health insurance are likely pleased with it until they face an unforeseen situation in which their coverage is changed or eliminated.

“I felt the same way about my health insurance until a series of unfortunate circumstances lead me to know that even the best of health insurance policy can disappear like ice in the hot Oklahoma sun,” Lindley said. “It is time, as a nation, we value families and provide preventative and restorative health care to all at an affordable price.”

Healthcare inequality is one of the most inhumane forms of injustice, Rev. Loyce Newton Edwards, Church of the Open Arms United Church of Christ retired pastor, said of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s famous words.

“Forty-three years after these prophetic words were spoken by Dr. King, we acknowledge the fierce urgency of now for comprehensive healthcare reform, and lament the reality of inequality in healthcare provisions,” he said.

Healthcare can often mandate the difference between life or death, Edwards said.

“So it’s not a matter of whether we think people are worthy,” Edwards said. “It is a moral imperative that we have healthcare reform. And when do we want it? Now.”