Philadelphia group walking to D.C. for health-care stops in Wilmington

Feb 19, 2010 — Dover Post

Antonio Prado

Wilmington, Del. -

A Philadelphia group on an eight-day walk to Washington, D.C., to demand action on stalled health-care reform received a warm welcome and meal in Wilmington on Thursday, Feb. 18.

The eight Philadelphians organized the "March to the Finish Line for Melanie" in honor of Melanie Shouse, who recently lost her battle with breast cancer after her insurance company refused to pay for the treatment her doctors said she needed.

Despite her illness, Shouse campaigned for health-care reform for all Americans, said Marc Stier, Pennsylvania state director of Health Care for America Now (HCAN).

So, despite the mounds of snow that cover many pavements, the group are determined to get to Washington to put pressure on politicians. The Philadelphia group could not make the trip without walking through Wilmington, Stier said, joking that they had to find it on a map.

Local activists for health-care reform welcomed the group to Bethel AME Church.

“We are frustrated,” Stier told a crowd of 30 people in the basement of the church. “It’s been a long time since November, 2008, when we elected a president and Congress committed to health-care reform.”

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More information about Melanie's March to the Finish Line can be found at www.melaniesmarch.com.

President Obama and a Democratic majority in Congress committed themselves to health-care reform, a move opposed by conservatives and insurance companies. Different versions of legislation were passed in the House and Senate, respectively. But, in a stunning political development, Republican Scott Brown won the Senate seat left open in Massachusetts by the death of Democrat Ted Kennedy. Brown’s election gave the minority party 41 seats in the Senate, and filibuster power to stall legislation they are opposed to.

The Brown election was seen as an indication that many Americans are concerned with what they see as the socialization of the world’s best health-care system.

Brandywine Hundred resident Branch Heller, among those welcoming the Philly group at Bethel, wonders how many of these critics have received social security, veterans benefits, G.I. loans and college loans – all social programs.

“I’m appalled that 50 million people in this country don’t have health insurance,” Heller said. “We’re supposedly a Christian nation. What’s Christian about the way we treat these people?”

Heller sees health-care reform as part of Christ’s command to “love thy neighbor as thyself.”

HCAN coordinator for Delaware Darlene Battle said she knows what it’s like to have and not have insurance. Even with insurance, the Newark resident faced a battle in getting all of the treatment she needed while suffering from bronchitis.

“I worked for an insurance company, so I know how easy it is for them to deny treatment,” Battle said. “You have to keep appealing.

“We know the insurance CEOs are making millions,” she added. “We’re just asking for a little common courtesy.”

As Philadelphia resident Bill West put it, everyone is a step away from being uninsured. He is thankful that his son has a full-time job with benefits that pay for occasional visits to the emergency room for Crohn’s Disease.

“But if he lost his job, he could not get insurance because he has a pre-existing condition,” he said.

The "March to the Finish Line for Melanie" group is scheduled to arrive in the District of Columbia on Wednesday, Feb. 24, the day before Obama's Health-care Summit.

On Friday, Feb. 19, the group was scheduled to stop in Newark before leaving Delaware.