We’re closing the books on 2019 tonight. All of us here have been doing some reflecting on how far we’ve come (be warned, we’ve been real busy, so this list is quite the doozy):

A year ago today, the Medicare for All landscape looked nothing like it does today. But we knew that the people were on our side, that YOU were on our side, and that a tidal wave was coming.

On February 9, we launched our big Week of Action and held 150 barnstorms with more than 5,000 attendees in total. And more than 1,300 canvassing events were planned at those barnstorms — that’s true grassroots power.

Two weeks later, Rep. Pramila Jayapal introduced H.R. 1384 on February 27. Thanks to the momentum we built, The Medicare for All Act of 2019 started with a record number of 108 cosponsors, but we had a lot more work to do.

We won our first crucial hearing in the House Rules Committee on April 30. Our dear friend, Ady Barkan — who is dying of ALS — gave an immensely powerful testimony in favor of Medicare for All.

That same weekend, hundreds of nurses delivered a giant medicine pill filled with monopoly money to Congress, demanding they stop following the whims of Big Pharma lobbyists.

We also paid a visit to the crooks at the PhRMA headquarters and covered the front of their building with hundreds of images of people relying on GoFundMe in order to pay for their life-saving medicine and treatment.

In May, the House Budget Committee held another hearing. Shortly after, we added THREE new cosponsors: Reps David Price, Lloyd Doggett, and John Yarmuth. Our momentum was still building. A month later, our dear friend Rebecca Wood testified before the House Ways & Means Committee with her daughter Charlie, too.

Then we held our HUGE People’s Assemblies in August. We had 50 events in the districts of Democrats who had not yet cosponsored the bill, with 1,200 attendees in total. In Brooklyn alone, the 10,000 petition signatures and hundreds of calls we helped generate along with our community allies won over Rep. Hakeem Jeffries — one of the most powerful Democrats in the House — as a cosponsor.

Ady Barkan — with the help of several of our Nurses — kickstarted his Uncovered series in September to interview all the Democratic presidential candidates about America’s health care crisis. It was a big moment. Together, we held the 2020 field accountable in a way that the mainstream media has refused to do.

In November, we wrapped up our year with a rally in Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s backyard. Hundreds of nurses, activists, and community leaders marched in San Francisco to demand she allow a House vote on Medicare for All.

Which was almost immediately followed by National Nurses United endorsing Bernie Sanders on November 15. (PS - If you want to get more involved in our Nurses for Bernie organizing work, just click here)

Last, but certainly not least, we wrapped up the year by driving hundreds of calls into Congress demanding that NNU President, Jean Ross, be included as a witness during the fourth and final health care hearing of the year. YOU made that happen. And she was able to give a powerful testimony to the Health Subcommittee of the House Energy & Commerce Committee as a result.

This year has been a WILD ride. We have come so incredibly far and achieved so much together in such a short amount of time. And even though you and I both know that our work is far from over, I’m glad we had this opportunity to look back, reflect, and celebrate everything we’ve done in 2019.

Here’s to an even more powerful 2020. And wishing you all a happy New Year.

Gratefully,

Jasmine Ruddy
Nurses’ Campaign to Win Medicare for All