So in one of the largest organizing events I've ever helped organize, the White House and Capitol Hill will both be hosting events for a delegation, organized by Progressive States Network, representing 700 state legislators from 47 states who have signed onto a letter demanding a public option, employer responsibility and affordability measures in any federal health care bill. That letter includes 4 Speakers of the House, 3 Senate Presidents, and 7 Party Caucus Leaders, along with 33 health committee chairs - the very legislators chosen by their colleagues to represent them on health care issues.

Secretary Sebelius and Nancy Ann DeParle will be receiving the letter at the White House at 3pm-- with a press conference -- and Senator Tom Harkin will be hosting a Capitol Hill press conference with key state leaders to highlight the letter and legislator voices in the federal health care debate. As we've highlighted, states have already pioneered legislation for public plan options -- so it's worth highlighting what state leaders have already done in understanding what federal lawmakers should do.

Rightwing attacks on health care reform try to make any change a socialist plot from France or worse-- shudder -- Canada, but the reality is that good old American states have been passing key elements of reform for years -- and are now demanding that the federal government step up and create a national plan to guarantee quality health care for all.

The delegation of state leaders included lawmakers from Iowa, Connecticut, Wisconsin, Washington, and Maine, each of which have been leading innovators in the drive to improve health care. A few key leaders in the delegation:

• Iowa State Senator Jack Hatch has led a multi-year drive to ensure that all Iowan children have health care.
• Connecticut House Speaker Christopher Donovan has been instrumental in pushing a groundbreaking pair of bills, passed by both chambers in Connecticut, called the Connecticut Healthcare Partnership, which would open the state's public employee plan to small businesses, and SustiNet, which would create the choice of a public insurance option alongside measures to improve quality and reduce costs.
• Wisconsin State Senator Jon Erpenbach has championed a proposal called Healthy Wisconsin, passed by the Wisconsin Senate, which would guarantee quality affordable coverage for all residents using cost-saving mechanisms made possible through shared responsibility and a large public insurance pool.
• Washington State Senator Karen Keiser has led the drive to regulate insurance companies, expand Medicaid coverage, and trim health costs in her state.
• Maine State Representative Sharon Treat, who serves as Director of the National Legislative Association on Prescription Drug Costs, is a key leader in moving policies to reduce prescription drug costs and expand access to lifesaving medications as well as other consumer protections.

This is the part of the health care debate that the media hasn't covered well-- the real fights in the states in recent years that federal reforms are now building on -- so it's welcome that the White House and Capitol Hill are highlighting them.   And with 700 legislators organizing in 47 states, it's also a message to Congress that there are elected leaders pushing them for reform and some of them are ready to step up to take their place to get the job done right if they fail to act this year.