Governor Deval Patrick, Governor Jim Doyle and Neera Tanden Announce new health care organization

Washington, DC – Today, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, former Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle & Center for American Progress Chief Operating Officer Neera Tanden announced the formation of a new health care organization.

Know Your Care, a 501c(3) group, will educate people about the Affordable Care Act’s life-saving consumer and patient protections that are already benefitting millions of Americans and will benefit millions more in the coming years.  Protect Your Care, a 501c(4) group, will be a grassroots lobbying effort to champion the Affordable Care Act and defend it from being repealed or defunded.

“The Affordable Care Act is under attack by well-coordinated and well-funded organizations that spread misinformation in order to take away people’s benefits by repealing health care,” said Patrick.  “This campaign will be an aggressive effort designed to explain and promote these rights as well as protect against other attacks such as attempts to privatize Medicare and Medicaid.”

“This campaign will highlight the stories of the millions of Americans who are already benefitting from this important law and how it will benefit millions more in the coming years,” said Doyle.  “And these benefits are achieved at the same time as reducing the deficit through controlling health care costs.”

“Repealing or defunding the Affordable Care Act would slash benefits millions of Americans are already seeing like the cancer patient who no longer has to worry she has to cut off her basic services from her doctor because she is reaching her lifetime limit on coverage,” said Tanden.”  “These aren’t just anecdotes, these are stories about real people already benefitting from this important law and millions more will continue to benefit in the years to come.”

Patrick, Doyle & Tanden will be serving on the advisory board for the organization and the following staff have been brought on board so far:

Senior Advisor – Paul Tewes – Obama’s state director for the Iowa caucuses where Paul and his team built the largest grassroots organization in history, culminating in a win that launched Obama’s historic campaign.  He ran the successful campaign to defeat President Bush’s plan to privatize Social Security in 2005 and worked as the DSCC’s Coordinated Campaign Director in 2001-02 and Political Director in 2003-04.

Campaign Manager – Tanya Bjork – most recently served as Director of Federal Affairs for Governor Jim Doyle where she  managed the state’s federal priorities and was the Administration’s chief liaison with the White House, federal agencies, Congress and other Governors.  She has more than 15 years of political and legislative experience including Wisconsin State Director for the Obama campaign, Regional Director for EMILY’s List, Regional Political Director for AFL-CIO, and a senior campaign staff member for Senator Wellstone and Senator Feingold.

Finance Adviser – Ami Copeland – managed and helped build the most successful political fundraising operation in history as Deputy National Finance Director for Obama’s presidential campaign during the primary and Senior Finance Advisor to the DNC in the general.  He directed Senator Nelson’s finance operation in 2006, served as Deputy National Finance Director for former Senate Minority Leader Daschle in 2004 and Regional Finance Director for the DSCC in 2003.

Communications Director – Eddie Vale – most recently worked as the Political Communications Director for the AFL-CIO.  In the 2008 cycle he was Communications Director for the IE group Progressive Media USA and did press for the John Edwards for President Campaign in New Hampshire.  He has also done communications work for Ned Lamont for Senate, Spitzer for Governor as well as Congressional and local races.

Media Consultant – Jim Margolis – partner at GMMB – works at the intersection of politics, advertising and advocacy on behalf of candidates, foundations, government agencies and corporate clients. He served as a Senior Advisor to Barack Obama in his campaign for the White House and currently represents more Democratic Senators than any other consultant in the nation, including Senate Leader Harry Reid.

Communications Advisor – David DiMartino – Partner at Blue Line Strategic Communications — held senior communications positions in national campaign organizations, including the DSCC in 1999-2000 and Kerry’s presidential primary campaign in 2003-04.  He has served on the staff of Senator Nelson, Cantwell and Kerry.

Pollster – John Anzalone – partner at Anzalone-Liszt Research – has nearly 20 years in the polling business helping candidates, associations and corporations all across the country with message development, strategic planning and targeting.  John has helped build a firm that helped elect Barack Obama as President and now represents two U.S. Senators, eighteen U.S. Congressmen and dozens of other statewide and local elected officials in over twenty states.

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Know Your Care is dedicated to educating the American people about the Affordable Care Act’s life-saving consumer and patient protections that are already benefitting millions of Americans and will benefit millions more in the coming years as additional provisions are implemented. It is organized under Section 501c(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, with application pending to the Internal Revenue Service organization – www.knowyourcare.org

Protect Your Care is a grassroots lobbying effort to champion the Affordable Care Act and defend it from being repealed or defunded.  It is a 501c(4) group.  –