Any mom or dad who's ever had a kid in diapers knows that if you catch a whiff of something bad, ignoring the smell isn't going to make that mess go away. And so it also goes for our broken healthcare system.

What stinks? Health insurance rate hikes of up to 39 percent are now happening around the country.  And the five biggest insurance companies earned 56% more in profits last year, while covering 2.7 million fewer people.[1]

This week insurance companies are meeting in Washington D.C. for their annual conference and no doubt, they plan to be out in force lobbying Congress against health reform.

Don't let the insurance industry be the only voice heard on healthcare in DC! Make your voice heard telling Congress that when something so clearly stinks, a change is needed!

*Take a second now to sign this petition telling Congress that health insurance company practices of dropping coverage while raising costs stink--and that America's families need a change!

http://momsrising.democracyinaction.org/o/1768/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=1019

We'll deliver your petitions to leaders and key swing members of Congress early next week, along with baby diapers decorated with messages calling for an end to the stinky practices of health insurance companies.

Please forward this petition on to friends, family, parent groups, soccer/basketball lists, and more so that we build a huge list of real people who are demanding that Congress rein in the abuses of health insurance companies.

Some are saying we should just hang tight in this stinky situation. But what's the cost of doing nothing? A recent article in the New York Times documents the unbearable costs that will accrue if we fail to take action to fix our broken healthcare system:

* Without a change, 275,000 people will die prematurely over the next 10 years because they do not have insurance
* Without a change, the typical price of family coverage is expected to almost double from $13,000 to $24,000 a year by 2020
* And, without a change, the number of uninsured people is predicted to increase from about 49 million today to between 57 and 66 million by 2019.[2]

These costs are too much to bear--and are avoidable if we act now to pass meaningful healthcare reform and rein in health insurance companies! It is indeed time for a change!

Please sign our petition today telling Congress that health insurance company practices of dropping coverage while raising costs stink--and forward it to as many people as you can so it's a call for action that Congress can not ignore! The next two weeks are likely to determine whether we finally achieve health reform that provides our families with secure and affordable healthcare.

http://momsrising.democracyinaction.org/o/1768/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=1019

Thanks for your work on behalf of America's families!

P.S. Have an extra diaper or two on hand? Or have a friend who can give you one? Help us send a visual message to Congress that they can't ignore by decorating a diaper, and then sending it our way so we can deliver it to Congress along with the petition (Instructions below). Decorate the diaper with messages like:

"Health insurance rate hikes of up to 39% stink! America's families need a change!"
-- or --
"56% increases in profits for health insurers last year stink! America's families need a change!"
-- or--
"MomsRising, we're changing more than diapers - get health reform done now for America's families!"

And please send those decorated diapers quick to MomsRising, P.O. Box 71083, Chevy Chase, MD 20813 so they arrive here by Monday, March 14th if possible. (But if they arrive later than that we can still use them for other upcoming actions.)

[1] http://www.healthreform.gov/reports/insuranceprospers/index.html, http://articles.latimes.com/2010/feb/11/business/la-fi-health-profits12-2010feb12

[2] http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/28/weekinreview/28abelson.html?scp=1&sq=cost%20of%20doing%20nothing&st=cse