Our History

Maine Providers Standing up for Healthcare has been very active since its inception in early 2017, and its rebranding as Healthcare Advocates for Maine in 2024, in hopes of moving Maine towards improved and more accessible healthcare. We are a coordinated group of volunteers motivated largely by our connection to the lives, fears, struggles, and triumphs of our patients and communities with the goal of improving outcomes in a just healthcare system. Here's the story of how we got started.

2020 and 2021

            The themes once again were VACCINATIONS, REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS, and,oh yes, A WORLDWIDE PANDEMIC

            Ironically, 2020 started off with a major campaign, in which many of MPSUH providers took part, to prevent the repeal of the law we had managed to get passed in the legislature doing away with exemptions for childhood vaccinations for kids attending schools. Fortunately, that was successful and childhood vaccination remained strong in the state. By the end of 2021, it seemed like all we did was talk about vaccination.  While the legislature was in session in early 2020, MPSUH members also testified on state funding for reproductive health and family planning clinics and extending postpartum care for a full year postpartum for MaineCare recipients. 

            Once Covid-19 really exploded in Maine, the legislative advocacy began to take a back seat to all the work all the providers in Maine had to do to keep people safe and alive.  Front line doctors, nurses, counselors, and public health staffers have worked endless hours providing care, support, and information to the people of the state.  Our membership has been a part of that direct care and those of us who were unable to be a part of it are eternally thankful to the folks who risked everything and worked so tirelessly.

The pandemic brought into sharp focus the inequality in healthcare provided to communities of color in the state.  We have been vocal about that issue and continue to work to raise up the voices of those communities and to acknowledge and to combat the systemic racism that produces health inequities.

The isolation and turmoil of the pandemic exacerbated the devastation of the opioid use crisis.  There were more deaths from drug overdose than ever before.  Fentanyl inclusion in the heroin supply as well as difficulty getting into treatment were a potent mix that produced more loss.  Many MPSUH members are strong advocates for treatment and for risk reduction.  Noah Nesin, MD, has been particularly effective in improving care for affected people in the Penobscot Valley.

And then, in 2021, amazingly, vaccination became available against Covid 19 and our members once again were discussing with anyone who would listen, the importance of vaccination.  Many of us took part in the large vaccination campaign to get doses into the arms of adults around the state as the year began and through the spring.  Then the same for the school children when that vaccine was approved.  All the while talking with patients, family, friends and the community at large about the advisability of getting vaccinated.

We ended 2021 frustrated that we could not convince everyone to get vaccinated and to end the pandemic and overworked by caring for those now ill with Covid 19.  We are also very concerned about the potential for a Supreme Court ruling that could end or diminish Roe v Wade and threaten abortion rights in this country.  Reproductive justice is under threat in multiple ways and will be a focus for us in 2022. 

2017-2019

Barbara and Peter Shaw and Connie Adler ignited Maine Providers Standing Up for Healthcare (MPSUH, aka Stand Up Maine) in January 2017. Outraged about the new Trump-Ryan-McConnell threat to the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA’s) expansion of health coverage, they rallied hundreds of frontline healthcare providers. This group penned an open letter to Maine's senior U.S. Senator Susan Collins and funded a full-page publication in the state’s largest newspapers on February 3, 2017. It began, “We urge you to vote against repeal and work with your colleagues to improve the ACA…”

In the months that followed, our grassroots group further organized, articulated our mission and values, and continued to focus primarily on defense of the ACA. 

We saw a special opportunity as frontline healthcare providers in Maine: Senator Collins would be crucial to any ACA repeal bill. Furthermore, she had earned a reputation for open-mindedness and bipartisan collaboration as well as devotion to all Mainers. 

In the spring and summer of 2017, we urged Senator Collins to oppose any bill that would reduce the number of Mainers covered by health insurance. Along with the work of multiple other groups, our efforts paid off. Over the course of three separate ACA repeal bills during the summer of 2017, Senator Collins was a crucial vote in preventing ACA repeal. She cited input from healthcare providers as a key factor in deciding how to cast her votes. 

Since advocating for ACA defense and improvement, MPSUH has remained active at the state and federal levels.

In mid-2017, we mobilized our network to quickly raise the required monies to fully fund an unfunded 2017 Maine law authorizing the creation of a bipartisan healthcare task force to explore public, private, and blended systems with which Maine could achieve universal health coverage. The task force is currently at work. 

In late 2017, MPSUH enthusiastically joined the “Question 2” effort led by Mainers for Healthcare to expand Medicaid/Mainecare to over 70,000 uninsured Mainers, a bill co-sponsored by the Maine Center for Economic Policy, Maine Equal Justice Partners, Maine People's Alliance, and Planned Parenthood of Northern New England. By a sizable 59 to 41% majority, Maine became the first state in America to expand Medicaid by a citizens’ referendum. While former Governor LePage refused to comply with this new law, MPSUH continued to advocate knowing that health insurance saves lives. Thankfully, Governor Mills signed Medicaid expansion into law immediately upon taking office in 2019. 

In June 2018, we were honored with a Maine Consumers for Affordable Healthcare 30th Anniversary 'Health Care Hero Award' for our "tireless work to improve access to health care for all Mainers," among a group of other recipients who have been working far longer than we have to improve healthcare access in Maine.

In the summer of 2018, we felt compelled to stand up against proposed rule changes to Title X family planning funding. Since 1970, Title X helps ensure low-income individuals have access to voluntary evidence-based family planning methods and services. (Note: Title X does not pay for abortions; current law and regulations already require that no federal funds go toward abortions.) The proposed changes would damage healthcare access and quality to 22,000 Maine women, many of whom live in a rural location and 80% of whom are in the vulnerable low-income population.

2019 was a busy year for our advocacy work! Early on, MPSUH joined the Maine Immunization Coalition and many other groups to strongly testify in favor of LD 798, a bill that passed to end non-medical vaccine opt-outs. We supported LD820, a bill that Governor Mills signed into law to end financial constraints for pregnancy terminations. And MPSUH is advocating aggressively for LD1539, a bill that increases health care access for young people in Maine.

In 2020, we’ve been active to prevent LD798 from being overturned via citizens’ referendum and we’ve testified in favor of LD1613 (see here and here) a bill to strengthen Maine women’s health and economic security.