More than 80 organizations sent a joint letter to Gov. Kay Ivey on Monday urging immediate action to close Alabama's health coverage gap. The groups are partners in Cover Alabama, a nonpartisan coalition dedicated to ensuring quality, affordable health coverage for all Alabamians. Alabama Arise is a founding member of Cover Alabama.

“We are writing today to ask you to close Alabama’s health coverage gap immediately,” the letter said. “Alabama faces a significant challenge in ensuring access to affordable health care for all its residents. Our state continues to maintain a substantial gap in coverage, leaving nearly 300,000 Alabamians without access to the care they need to stay healthy and thrive.”

Read Cover Alabama's full news release on the letter here.

The groups’ call to action came after a recent joint hearing of the Senate and House health committees. During the hearing, Republican lawmakers from Arkansas and North Carolina testified about their respective approaches to expanding health care access.

“Alabama is one of only 10 states that have not closed the coverage gap,” said Debbie Smith, Alabama Arise’s Cover Alabama campaign director. “Our lawmakers heard two successful options to expand health care and the benefits of each, and there are many more positive examples across the country.”

The hearing demonstrated two potential approaches Alabama could emulate to close the coverage gap — traditional Medicaid expansion, like North Carolina, or a public-private option, like Arkansas.

“I live in a very rural and very conservative area,” North Carolina state Sen. Jim Burgin said during the hearing. “I have not had one person that has come up to me and told me, ‘Jim, you shouldn’t have done that, and we’re against you for doing that.’ But I’ve had hundreds of people come up to me and thank me because their loved one is now getting help.”