This is a response to UnitedHealth Group C.E.O.: The Health Care System Is Flawed. Let’s Fix It.an OpEd in the New York Times published on December 13, 2024 written by Andrew Witty. This response is written by Progressive Maryland leader Emily Leonard, resident of Baltimore.

Healthcare executives like UnitedHealth Group's CEO Sir Andrew Witty want us to believe that health insurance claims denials happen because our current system is a "patchwork." He claims his company wants it to be better. But I want to make this very clear: this "patchwork" is broken by design, and that is how UnitedHealth Group made 22.3 billion dollars in profit in 2023. A company benefiting from such dysfunction has no incentive to make conditions better for those who are suffering. Calling healthcare "complicated" is an excuse. An excuse that causes immense human suffering.

Better health outcomes won't come from some C-Suite executive making decisions about human lives. Better health outcomes will come when clinicians are free to make decisions about patient care, unencumbered by corporate interests who want to increase their bottom line. I agree, Mr. Witty, our system doesn't work as well as it should, but your company will never be part of the solution. Your company is the problem.

We’ve made it to our 50th and final memo of the year! For 50 weeks, you’ve come back to hear about what we’ve been up to, celebrate milestones, tackle challenges, and move forward together. Thank you for being part of this journey with us. Your support and engagement fuel everything we do, and we couldn’t be prouder to share these updates with you each week.

Tonight, we’re hosting our final statewide event of the year: Making Meaning. This virtual gathering at 6 PM is a chance to reflect on 2024, strategize for protecting and advancing progressive policies in Maryland, and hear from inspiring leaders like Sulma Arias (People’s Action) and Will Jawando (Montgomery County Council). Don’t miss it—RSVP here

Looking ahead to tomorrow, tune in at 11 AM to WPFW 89.3 FM (or listen online at wpfwfm.org) for the final radio show of the year with our Executive Director, Larry Stafford.

Read on for exciting updates and events from our chapters and issue campaigns, along with what’s on the horizon for Progressive Maryland in 2025. And don't forget to check out our End of Year TikTok! 

Please note our offices will be closed from December 20th until January 6th. We’ll be back in the new year, energized and ready to keep building a better Maryland together.

Wishing you happiness, joy, and peace this holiday season. 

Until next year,

The Progressive Maryland Team.

Money is on everyone's mind in the Maryland power structure after Gov. Moore's appearance at the Maryland Association of Counties' winter conference this past weekend. He did not bring good news about the state budget, and that was gloom-inducing among the counties that, to various extents, depend on state aid -- especially for schools. The companion story about implementing the state's ambitious Blueprint for school improvement is, as the reader might expect, also endangered. And news on the state's climate goals is not good either, as an administration that does not see climate change as a problem prepares to take charge in D.C. We wish that there were less depressing news cascading down during the holiday season, for sure, but that what we've got to offer. Marylanders, we note with hope, are good at finding their own good cheer -- we're counting on that. Twenty Twenty-Five will be an interesting year and one in which organized fight-back may be on the agenda. Enjoy your holidays but count yourselves all.in.for.2025.

How Trump managed to act like the president when he is more than a month from being inaugurated is a puzzlement but reflects his particular talent for the spectacle, patched together from reality shows and Hitler-like rally scenes. As he piles up a collection of rich butt-kissers to populate his entourage -- er, administration -- more of the rest of us are calculating how far to burrow in to avoid his first swings at his imagined Deep State. We hope we can stop writing headlines like this one eventually, but alas not yet.

In Maryland, as you will see in the Memo, Progressive Maryland and allied groups are mounting their own campaigns to enable our working families to shake off the worst of the Marmalade Man. We are lucky in Maryland but have to watch our step with an economy well supported by about 150,000 federal employees. They are all watching their backs and we need to help them; a well-managed combination of policy and governance depends on them and, soon, may be even more the difference between bad and worse for all of us.

Happy Monday! We hope you had a restful and rejuvenating holiday break. As we jump back into the work ahead, we want to take a moment to recognize that tomorrow is International Day of Persons with Disabilities. At Progressive Maryland, we are committed to recognizing the intersectionality of the issues faced by people with disabilities and fighting for the rights of all. Whether it’s in the events we plan or the campaigns we lead, we strive to ensure our disability community is always included and uplifted.

It’s hard to believe, but we’re now at the start of December. While the year is winding down, things are still in full swing here at Progressive Maryland! In this week’s memo, we’ve got details on upcoming events, fun ways to stay engaged (including a game!), and important updates you won’t want to miss.

We’re excited to finish the year strong with you and look forward to continuing to reach our shared goals. Let’s make these last weeks of the year count!

In solidarity,

The Progressive Maryland Team

As the once and future Prez assembles his gang of miscreants and oligarchs, Red states are wallowing in the possibilities while Maryland and other Blue states in gangland's sights are assessing Trump's intentions based on the people with whom he is populating his billionaires' paradise. Trump's intentions do not look like any kind of government we are used to, or can even imagine.  And in Maryland: MoCo to keep burning trash; Jamie R makes his move; the state needs to double mental health personnel; fossil fuel lobbying crimping climate plans (?); democratizing Assembly replacements; bracing for deportations in the state's Hispanic communities. See the details in News You Can Use for this week.

It feels good to be stepping into the official holiday season! While the exhaustion may be catching up with us, so is the joy of seeing just how much we’ve accomplished together. Here at Progressive Maryland, we’ve already started planning for our 2025 agenda, and we couldn’t be more excited about what’s ahead.

In case you missed it, we celebrated a major victory last week: Prince George’s County Council passed a bill to index the minimum wage to inflation! Thanks to tireless advocates, over 2,600 petition signers, and powerful testimony from our members, wages in Prince George’s County will finally keep pace with the rising costs of housing, groceries, and other essentials. This is a life-changing win, and we’re determined to create even more victories like this in 2025.

There’s still important work to tackle in these final weeks, and we’re counting on all of you to help us finish strong. We’ve got some exciting issue campaign events coming up so be sure to look later in the memo for details to add to your calendar. You’ll also find important updates and key state and national news. 

Don’t forget to check out a sneak peek of our 2025 agenda and see how you can make a tremendous impact.

In solidarity,

The Progressive Maryland Team

"Around the country, states led by Democrats have expressed alarm about many of the new measures that Mr. Trump and his allies have described and have made broad preparations of their own," the New York Times (among many others) reports. "Lawyers have been scouring through the conservative policy plan known as Project 2025, and they have been strategizing how to challenge any such plans in an altered judicial landscape. Private advocacy groups have hundreds of lawyers ready to go to court. Governors in Democratic-led states have been preparing to coordinate."
Maryland's attorney general, Anthony Brown, is joining other blue-state AGs to strategize in next-door Pa. as the Trump revenge machine cranks into action. The state's other officials (see below) are wondering if they are now on their own as far as preparing systems for the impact of climate change. Counties and cities are putting together protections for their immigrant communities. Get the picture, storm clouds and all, in News You Can Use.