After our very busy week with the NoKings Rallies, Pride in the Park, and Juneteenth, Chippewa Valley Indivisible finished off their incredibly busy and successful week with Save Our Hospitals Protests in Chippewa Falls and Eau Claire. Hospitals that had been serving our communities since 1888 both closed in March of 2024 because it became financially untenable to continue. The need was there, the money wasn’t.

Healthcare is a vital issue for this area. Accordingly, both WEAU, TV 13 and WQOW, TV 18 covered the protests which did evoke a response from Derrick Van Orden disavowing that he voted for Medicaid cuts (not an accurate representation of what will occur because of his vote).

Thanks to Dr. Rita Simon, Dr. Jeffrey Brown, Nina Kramer RN, Roxann Rice, Mike Soblesi, Eric and Jamie Halfen for speaking out on camera about this issue. HUGE SHOUTOUT to the 115+ concerned citizens who protested and marched in Chippewa Falls AND Eau Claire in spite of the extreme heat advisory. The call went out and on very short notice, people came to fight for our communties. Be sure to click on the links to watch the coverage … and KEEP SPEAKING OUT. This Senate version of the Reconciliation Bill (the Big UGLY Bill) is even worse and it will harm so many people in our area. Go to our website, ChippewaValleyIndivisible.com for Calls and Talking Points to help us in this critical battle.

And, come to the meeting on Thursday to learn more about how to talk to your friends in neighbors in a way that they can hear what you are saying about this bill. We must bridge the divide, bring our community together, and fight for all of us. We need you in this fight!

•• WEAU, TV 13 ••         •• WQOW, TV 18 ••

IMPORTANT REQUEST: Please register via Mobilize for these events. We had to change the location to the Chippewa County Courthouse because we were unable to get permission for HSHS St. Joseph’s. We sent out three location change emails via Mobilize, reached out to our coalition partners, AND posted on social media but we still failed to reach some of you in time. PLEASE, always register in Mobilize (and watch your emails) for these pop-up actions.