RoseAnn Demoro is the Director of National Nurses United(NNU) , a Sanders' supporter and surrogate, and a fierce advocate for Universal Healthcare for all Americans. I formally extended an invitation, via an email to the NNU dated June 22nd, for her to come to Philadelphia and speak at The People's Convention.

After Bernie's speech in New York last night, however, I realized that my earlier invitation to Ms. DeMoro was inadequate. Why? Because it did not explain to her my very personal reason for why I strongly support The People's Revolution and the The People's Convention they are organizing.

So, today, I sent another email to her, via NNU, to tell her my story as to why I support this event, and why I want a better healthcare system in our country, one that covers everyone, and one which takes the decision as to the proper course of medical treatment out of the hands of private insurance company "claims adjusters," and returns that power to patients, their doctors and their other health care providers.

I don't know if she will ever see my letter, however, as I have no direct email address for her, and I cannot know if the people who screen emails will in fact pass it on to her. So, that is why I am publicly posting my letter to her here at caucus99percent. Here is is in full:

Dear Ms. RoseAnn DeMoro,

My name is Steve Searls, and I personally extended to you an invitation to speak at The People’s Convention, the first big grassroots event scheduled in Philadelphia on July 23rd, just prior to the commencement of the Democratic Party Convention. Link: The People's Convention - Philadelphia

But what I didn't tell to you is why I support this event and why I want you to be there on July 23rd in Philadelphia with me. It's very damn personal for me.

In 2006, my wife, Clara, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She survived but the chemotherapy severely damaged her brain. You can read about her story here, if you wish: Clara’s Miracle

Clara was lucky in one sense in that her claim for social security disability benefits was not denied, unlike so many others. Her claim was accepted, not because of her brain injury, but because she had pancreatic cancer, and was expected to die. Yet she lives and is now covered under Medicare.

Regrettably, the only treatments approved by Medicare are expensive drugs, and when the price of one of them, Modafinil, increased significantly last year, Medicare refused to authorize it, thus costing us several several thousands of dollars out of our pocket, money we could ill afford, until they finally relented and reauthorized it for her. As you know, Medicare is prohibited from negotiating with drug companies over drug prices.

However, the most effective treatment that we've found for Clara is Music and Dance therapy in Rochester, NY where we live. Since she began non-drug treatment with Maria Battista-Hancock, the Expressive Arts Department Chair of the Hochstein School of Music and Dance in 2013, Clara has made great strides, to the extent that she can once again play the piano and was able to give a speech before hundreds of donors at a fundraiser for Hochstein, something that would have been impossible just three years ago.

Unfortunately, like many non-drug treatments, music therapy is not covered by Medicare, so we rely on tuition assistance from Hochstein to lessen the cost of the most effective treatment Clara receives for her neurotoxic brain injury. This is ridiculous and wrong, and is why I support Universal Healthcare coverage for all that covers the costs of all treatment options approved by a patient's physician and other healthcare providers.

The platform that The People's Convention ratifies will include Universal Healthcare. It will be presented on the floor of the DNC by pledged delegates who are working with us.

So, I hope you will stand with me on July 23rd at the Arch Street Meeting House in Philadelphia to witness real participatory democracy in action as people from all walks of life will have the right vote for each proposed plank.

Thank you for your time,

Steve Searls
Outreach Working Group
The People's Convention

If any of you would share this on Facebook, Twitter or other social media, I would be most grateful.