Progress Georgia Joins National Coalition on Tax the Rich Campaign
ATLANTA – Today, the progressive communications non-profit Progress Georgia launched a campaign calling on Georgia Congressman Austin Scott to vote in favor of the Build Back Better Act funded by making the wealthy pay their fair share. The campaign kicked off today with a mobile billboard at Telfair County Library, where Rep. Scott is to hold his mobile office hours and will be accompanied by similar radio ads.
The campaign comes in response to the representative’s previous vote against the American Rescue Plan Act which set the state up to receive $1.88 billion in federal funding to expand access to medicaid to an additional 726,000 Georgians as well as provide 134,900 previously uninsured Georgians access to healthcare coverage with $0 premiums on the ACA market. About 36 percent of Georgians in the medicare coverage gap are Black and 22 percent are Hispanic.
Telfair County is ground zero for rural hospital closures in Georgia with Taylor Telfair Regional Hospital being the first of nine rural hospitals to close in the state since 2008. Not only is the county still without a hospital today, but according to a 2018 report from the Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce, Telfair County has 0 emergency medicine physicians, 0 family medicine physicians, 0 OB/GYN physicians and one pediatric physician. Despite this, Rep. Scott has lambasted and rejected any investment into getting Georgians back on track as a “tax-and-spend spree” that would harm American families.
It’s beyond time for Rep. Scott to invest in Georgian families by passing President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better Act which would expand Medicare, invest in long term care, provide paid family and medical leave and more.
This campaign is kicking off in conjunction with a broader national campaign in partnership with Tax March, Build Back Together, CAP Action, HCAN, Protect Our Care, Health Care Voter, Patriotic Millionaires, Iowa Citizen Action Network, Tax March Iowa, Progress Iowa, Innovatio Ohio, 99% PA, and Battleborn Progress calling on all members of Congress to ensure that the $3.5T plan is paid for by making the wealthy and corporations pay their fair share through in-state earned media actions, flyover banners, newspaper ads, and more.
Nicole Henderson, Communication Strategist for Progress Georgia said:
“It’s a known fact that Georgia’s rural hospitals have been faced with financial challenges. We also know the devastation that happens within a community when they lose essential services such as healthcare providers. Georgians at no fault of their own are left behind when they have to delay medical treatment due to the challenges of finding a healthcare provider. In order for rural Georgia communities to get the adequate resources needed for a quality of life comparable to other Georgians in more metropolitan areas, Rep. Scott and the rest of Congress need to vote in favor of the Build Back Better plan.”
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Part of the Progress Now network, Progress Georgia is a political digital and communications hub for the progressive movement in Georgia. Progress Georgia works to uplift the values and voices of the progressive movement across the state by keeping politicians accountable and elevating the issues that matter most to our communities. Learn more at https://progressga.org/.
