Media Contact: Gwen Oldham at SF Chamber, 415-352-8866 or goldham@SFChamber.com

San Francisco Chamber of Commerce Announces Support for the Coalition to Advance Healthcare Reform

Leading Bay Area Business Organization Endorses CAHR Principles for Market-based Healthcare Reform and joins Movement to Forge Solutions to the Nation's Healthcare Crisis

San Francisco, Nov. 18, 2009 – The San Francisco Chamber of Commerce announced today its support for the Coalition to Advance Healthcare Reform (CAHR), a coalition of the nation's top business leaders and largest employers working to advance market-based solutions to America's healthcare crisis. Representing more than 1,500 businesses in the City and County of San Francisco, the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce endorsed CAHR's core principles for healthcare reform and will actively work in concert with the coalition's efforts to support national reforms.

“The San Francisco Chamber of Commerce believes that business must be part of the solution to our nation's healthcare crisis,” said Steve Falk, President & CEO, San Francisco Chamber of Commerce. “We support CAHR and their core principles because they put forth a framework for a market-based system with universal access to care. It is time to change our broken healthcare system to meet the needs of the American people and American business.”

A longtime champion of health care reform in California, the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce was one of the only business organizations to support Governor Schwarzenegger's 2007 statewide healthcare reform proposal. The organization continues to play an active role in city, county and state healthcare reform discussions and endorses CAHR's five core principles including: a market-based healthcare system to control the cost of care; universal coverage with individual responsibility for all Americans; financial assistance for low-income individuals for routine healthcare in traditional venues; healthier behavior and incentives to promote prevention and wellness; and equal tax treatment for individuals and businesses purchasing health insurance.

More information on the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce is available at www.sfchamber.com.  More information on CAHR is available at www.coalition4healthcare.org.

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About the Chamber
Founded in 1850, the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce is recognized as the pre-eminent business organization for advocacy, networking and economic growth. The Chamber  delivers on its mission to attract, develop and retain business in San Francisco by representing companies and organizations that make San Francisco a preferred destination for businesses and visitors – a great place to live and work.