ACT Participates in Conference Call with President Obama

August 19, 2009  |  News 10, Sacramento  |  Link to article

CLICK "LINK TO ARTICLE" TO SEE THE NEWS CLIP

SACRAMENTO, CA - A group of Sacramento-area religious congregations is taking an active role in the healthcare debate.

On Wednesday, members of Sacramento Area Congregations Together joined religious groups from across the United States for an open discussion with President Obama on a faith-based approach to healthcare reform.

Participants represented a variety of religious backgrounds who share the same goal - to urge the president to continue his fight for universal healthcare for all Americans.

Jim Wallace of Sojourner discussed the importance of staying the course and getting a comprehensive healthcare plan established as quickly and swiftly as possible.

"We are in danger of losing the moral core of this debate, which is that many people are hurting from a broken healthcare system," Wallace said.

Obama assured those who participated in the conference call that he plans to forge ahead, despite growing opposition.

"We are closer to achieving that reform than we've ever been," he said.

And even though the president's healthcare plan has sparked some debate among religious groups over whether or not it should cover controversial procedures such as abortion, the groups involved in Wednesday's teleconference say, that's really not the issue at hand.

They believe focus needs to remain on passing a nationalized healthcare plan that provides universal coverage for everyone.

Sally Smith of Sacramento ACT said, "We don't take a stand on those issues because we are such a varied group of churches that have such varied philosophies about it that it's not what we care about."

Obama ended Wednesday's discussion by thanking participants for their support and urging them to continue their efforts to educate the public on the need for healthcare reform.

"I am going to need the help of all of you. I need you to knock on door, talk to neighbors. I need you to spread the facts and speak the truth," he urged.

Something Smith said her group plans to do.

Sacramento ACT will be hosting a townhall meeting to discuss the need for affordable healthcare. It is scheduled for Wednesday, Aug. 26 at 6:30 p.m. at Trinity Cathedral, 2620 Capitol Avenue, Sacramento.

by Patricia Kakridas, KakridasPatricia@news10.net

News10/KXTV