The White House has reversed itself and extended invitations for two single payer supporters to attend Thursday’s Healthcare Summit.

Congressman John Conyers, author of HR 676 single payer legislation in the House, and Dr. Oliver Fine, who currently heads Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP), received invitations on Wednesday.

Single payer advocates should take heart and great pride in their role in reversing what had been a refusal to invite any single payer advocates to the Summit. The White House was inundated with phone calls, faxes and emails all urging that the invitations be extended.

A great big thank you is extended to all those who posted, distributed and otherwise spread the word and, to many, many more who actually took the time to contact the White House to object to the exclusion of single payer advocates.

This small victory should give us all hope. It should also send word to any and all who seek to keep single payer “off the table” that single payer advocates must be heard in all the committees and subcommittees of the House and Senate which will be considering healthcare reform legislation.