FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, November 7, 2017
CONTACT: Kawana Lloyd, 240-472-2860, kawana@megaphonestrategies.com; Kelsea Wilkerson, 972-951-6694, Kelsea@megaphonestrategies.com
Ed Begley, Jr., Adam Arkin, Lily Tomlin, and Others Also Weighing in as HEAL California Continues Push for SB 562, Healthy California Act
[November 8, 2017], HEAL California, a project of the California OneCare Education Fund, will release its newest celebrity PSA featuring Golden Globe winning actor Scott Wilson, (who played Hershel Greene in The Walking Dead), as part of its two month-long, celebrity PSA campaign, “Improved Medicare for All.” The series of ads was intentionally launched during open enrollment to draw attention to the human cost of the corporate healthcare in California.
The latest set of PSAs feature:
- Sheila Kuehl, Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors and former California state senator (public release set for later this month);
- Dr. Wendy Walsh, radio host and television commentator (public release set for later this month);
- Adam Arkin, actor (linked);
- Ed Asner, actor (linked);
- Ed Begley, Jr., actor (linked);
- Rafael Leyva, cinematographer (Spanish language, linked);
Each offer personal perspectives on issues ranging from open enrollment to government waste to the impacts of corporate healthcare on families such as high out-of-pocket costs, doctor networks, etc.
The final PSAs with Lily Tomlin, actor will be released in December. JOURNALISTS CAN REQUEST PREVIEW LINKS OF ALL UPCOMING PSAs.
“Right now, families lurch from one insurance policy to another, switching doctors and care plans every job and even every year,” says Andrew McGuire, California OneCare Executive Director. “While the federal government continues attacking core healthcare programs including Obamacare, Medicare, Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), nearly three million Californians are uninsured and 12 million can’t afford to use their coverage because of high out-of-pocket costs.
Nationally, the 2018 open enrollment period started on November 1, 2017 and ends on December 15. The Trump administration slashed the advertising budget for ACA reminders by more than 90 percent and cut the actual enrollment period in half, from three months in 2017 to six weeks in 2018.
“A California Medicare for All system like SB 562, the Healthy California Act, is great for everyone of all ages, from birth onward,” says Kathy Fields Lander, co-chair, California OneCare Entertainment Industry Task Force. “We must promote honest narratives about Medicare for All. It saves lives and money, it’s great for business and it’s politically feasible. It’s the sensible and right thing to do.”
For interviews with HEAL California contact: Kawana Lloyd, 240-472-2860, kawana@megaphonestrategies.com.
For more info and resources, visit: heal-ca.org
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HEAL California is a news and information hub providing resources, analysis, and commentary on the growing Medicare for All movement in California.