Dear Friends, I am writing to you today to ask for your support. I have started a petition to give to the Senators and Congressmen of Utah, asking for their support in comprehensive health care reform. I am not asking you to support universal or socialized medicine. What I am asking you to do is support the reform of a broken system, a system that has left millions without care. People like my mother who until she was able to get on Medicare did not have health insurance and could not afford or qualify of coverage under the current system. If you believe that it is a right that all men/women are born equal and that all men/women have the same rights. Then I encourage you to stand with me in supporting right for every American to have Health Care. If you don’t agree with me that is fine I still count you as a friend and I thank you for your time. Sam Simmons

State Health Facts: includes the health insurance status of the states population (those with various types of health coverage or who are uninsured), and demographic information (such as income, race/ethnicity, age, gender) for those who are uninsured, have employer-based insurance, or Medicaid. Information about Medicaid and Medicare beneficiaries can be found in those respective categories. http://www.statehealthfacts.org/profilecat.jsprgn=46&cat=3 President Obama is committed to working with Congress to pass comprehensive health reform this year in order to control rising health care costs, guarantee choice of doctor, and assure high-quality, affordable health care for all Americans. http://www.healthreform.gov/ Report concludes uninsured are costly for all: Health insurance premiums for an average family are $1,000 a year higher because of costs of health care for the uninsured, a new report finds. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/28/AR2009052800705.html Deseret News articles: U.S. favors health-care prevention, poll finds http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705309340/US-favors-health-care-prevention.html GOP attacks health-care plan http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705309342/Obama-health-care-plan-attacked.html GOP senators warn Obama on health care http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705309304/GOP-warns-Obama-on-health-care.html Bennett doesn't want health-care plan run by the U.S. government http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,705308763,00.html Small firms seen benefiting from health revamp: Small businesses would benefit significantly from an overhaul of the U.S. healthcare system even if they were required to help pay for the medical coverage of their employees, a study release on Thursday said. The study commissioned by Small Business Majority, a nonprofit healthcare advocacy group, said small businesses could save as much as $855 billion over the next decade with a broad overhaul that aims to reduce costs and provide medical coverage to millions of uninsured. http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSTRE55A4A520090611 Utah vs. Obama's healthcare reform The Washington Post's Chris Cillizza says Utah's senators have a pivotal role in the national healthcare reform debate: http://blogs.sltrib.com/slcrawler/index.phpp=888&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1 Children Suffer as States Cut Health Budgets As the recession forces more hospitals and doctors to pare costs and services, the cutbacks are hitting one group of patients especially hard: children. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124519908310621365.html