Not to miss: special Oprah show this Thursday, 4:00 on ABC: 'Sick in America: It Can Happen to You'

This Thursday, September 27, 2007, tune in to The Oprah Winfrey Show to hear Steve Skvara, a retired steelworker serving on the Board of the Indiana Alliance of Retired Americans, talk to Oprah Winfrey about losing his pension and health insurance, and asking his now famous question, “What’s Wrong with America?”

The Oprah Winfrey Show, “Sick in America: It Can Happen to You,” will be broadcast nationally Thursday, September 27, at 4:00 pm local time (airtime in most areas) on ABC-TV affiliate stations (check your local TV program schedules for details).

“I am extremely proud of Steve for sharing his experience with the world,” said George Kourpias, President of the Alliance for Retired Americans. “This is only one example of how retirees will make our voices heard in the health care debate, and it is an important illustration of how powerful each of our stories can be.”

The broadcast will include a replay of Skvara's previously televised question, which he posed to the Democratic Presidential Candidates at the AFL-CIO’s presidential forum in Chicago, Illinois, August 7. Over one million people at home that night heard how Skvara retired from LTV Steel after he and his wife, Sandy, suffered life-altering injuries in an automobile accident. Two years after retiring, LTV filed for bankruptcy, costing him one third of his pension and all of his health care, and leaving Skvara unable to afford health insurance for his wife.

“Steve lost nearly everything when his steel mill closed. He has the spotlight, but unfortunately there are millions and millions of Steves who have lost their pensions and health care in retirement and now struggle to pay for medical care and other day-to-day expenses,” said Kourpias. “We cannot all be heard on Oprah, but we will be heard at the ballot boxes next November.”

Also on the show, guest Michael Moore will discuss his film Sicko with a health insurance lobbyist. The Oprah Winfrey Show, “Sick in America: It Can Happen to You,” will air Thursday, September 27, at 4:00 pm local time (in most areas) on ABC-TV affiliate stations (check your local TV program schedules for details).

Click here to view article and video of Steve Skvara.

Thanks to Jim McGreevy for contributing this item 9/25/07