Laura Packard Explained

Birth Date:23 May 1976
Education:University of Michigan (BS, Computer Science)
Occupation:Health care activist
Known For:Health Care Voices, Health Care Voter

Laura Packard (born May 23, 1976) is an American health care activist[1] and political commentator. She is the founder of Health Care Voices,[2] a non-profit grassroots organization for adults with serious medical conditions. She is executive director of the group Health Care Voter,[3] with actress Alyssa Milano, singer T-Boz, politicians Donna Edwards and Anton Gunn, activists Ady Barkan and Brad Woodhouse, and others as co-chairs.[4] Packard is also executive director of Get America Covered, a group that promotes increased health coverage.[5] She hosts a weekly call-in television show for Americans with health care and health insurance questions on act.tv, Care Talk.[6]

Packard was a featured speaker at the 2020 Democratic National Convention with Joe Biden.[7] [8]

A self-employed small business owner,[9] she was diagnosed with Stage 4 Hodgkin Lymphoma in 2017.[10] Believing that the Affordable Care Act saved her life[11] and that without it she would be bankrupt or dead without the care she received through her insurance,[12] she became an outspoken critic of repeal attempts. Her sharp questioning led United States Senator Dean Heller to eject her from a public event,[13] and her criticism of President Donald Trump resulted in him blocking her on Twitter.[14] A 2018 lawsuit, Knight First Amendment Institute v. Trump, forced President Donald Trump to reinstate her access to his social media accounts, along with that of 40 others.[15]

Packard spoke on five national bus tours with progressive health care advocacy organization Protect Our Care in 2018,[16] 2019,[17] 2021,[18] 2022,[19] and 2023.[20], and a national bus tour with advocacy organization Courage for America on the debt ceiling crisis in 2023.[21]

Moving to Denver, Colorado in 2019, her political advocacy broadened to include challenges to United States Senator Cory Gardner’s community engagement, and she went on a statewide bus tour with “Cardboard Cory” to accentuate his purported inaccessibility.[22] She also challenged United States Representative Lauren Boebert's health care record.[23] and was blocked by Boebert on Twitter[24] in February 2022.

In 2018, Packard was noted for her outspoken opposition to the nomination of Justice Brett Kavanaugh.[25] She was included again in media coverage for her 2020 opposition to the nomination of Justice Amy Coney Barrett.[26]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Pete Buttigieg and Kamala Harris Have Made Waves. Some Progressives Remain Skeptical.. Epstein. Reid. New York Times. July 16, 2019.
  2. Web site: 'Healthcare is at risk': The impact of Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death on everyday Americans. Menendez. Alicia. MSNBC. September 19, 2020.
  3. Web site: What’s driving Biden’s booster plan. Cancryn. Adam. Politico. August 19, 2021.
  4. Web site: Health Care Voter announces Six new campaign co-chairs, ramps up ahead of 2018 elections. January 22, 2018. Patriot Not Partisan.
  5. Web site: In ‘Do-Over,’ Enrollment in Affordable Care Act Health Insurance Reopens. Carrns. Ann. New York Times. February 5, 2021.
  6. Web site: Care Talk. November 1, 2021. act.tv.
  7. Web site: Denver health care activist speaking at Democratic convention. Wingerter. Justin. Denver Post. August 18, 2020.
  8. Web site: Four issues besides coronavirus that Democrats are hammering at their convention. Phillips. Amber. Washington Post. August 19, 2020.
  9. Web site: Cancer survivor worried politics over healthcare will bankrupt or cost her her life. Liacko. Alexa. ABC Denver 7. October 30, 2020.
  10. Web site: Obamacare saved my life, now its on the brink of destruction. Packard. Laura. Denver Post. December 23, 2019.
  11. Web site: Trump and Republicans' health care 'plan' would endanger people like me amid Covid-19. Packard. Laura. NBC News. September 24, 2020.
  12. Web site: I'd be bankrupt or dead without the Affordable Care Act. We're both survivors — so far.. Packard. Laura. USA Today. March 22, 2020.
  13. Web site: Woman says she was asked to leave after asking Sen. Heller health-care question. Washington Post. December 4, 2017.
  14. Web site: Trump Twitter-Blocked a Woman with Stage 4 Cancer — And She Has a Message for Him. Hayes. Christal. Newsweek. September 20, 2017.
  15. Web site: President Trump forced to unblock dozens of Twitter users after court ruling. Binder. Matt. Mashable. August 29, 2018.
  16. Web site: Health Care Activist Laura Packard to Join Protect Our Care’s Bus Tour. September 11, 2018. Protect Our Care.
  17. Web site: THIS WEEK: Protect Our Care "Health Care Emergency" Bus Tour Kicks Off With Stops in Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado. August 1, 2019. Protect Our Care.
  18. Web site: ‘Protect Our Care’ bus tour advocates for better, affordable healthcare. August 9, 2021. WABI. Roberts. Spencer.
  19. Web site: "Lower Cost Better Care" bus tour kicks off in Bangor. October 3, 2022. Fox 22 Bangor. Douglas. AJ.
  20. Web site: Expanding affordable health care in Wisconsin. August 16, 2023. Wisconsin Examiner.
  21. Web site: ‘Back Off Our Benefits’ campaign travels through Durango. April 3, 2023. Durango Herald. Brown. Tyler.
  22. Web site: A Cardboard Cutout Of Sen. Cory Gardner Just Wrapped Up A Statewide Bus Tour. Grenoble. Ryan. Huffington Post. August 26, 2019.
  23. Web site: Lauren Boebert cares most about Lauren Boebert, not Coloradans like me. Packard. Laura. Colorado Newsline. May 22, 2021.
  24. Web site: The GOP’s Cancel Culture Warriors. Packard. Laura. The Progressive. February 17, 2022.
  25. Web site: With Trump’s nominee announced, the battle for the court begins. Scherer. Michael. Washington Post. July 9, 2018.
  26. Web site: Fears for Obamacare if Amy Coney Barrett confirmed to supreme court. Holpuch. Amanda. The Guardian. October 2, 2020.

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