Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready has released a new video urging that people only vote for congressional candidates that support the Affordable Care Act, colloquially known as ObamaCare.
"Life is a pre-existing condition," McCready says at the beginning of the video. The guitarist was diagnosed with Crohn's disease when he was 21 years old, and has long been an advocate for the condition. (As noted by the Seattle Times, "Crohn's disease is characterized by the inflammation of the intestinal wall, while ulcerative colitis causes ulceration and inflammation in the colon and rectum.")
The video -- which was directed by Jesse Dylan, the man behind the 2008 video "Yes We Can" -- stresses the difficulty McCready has had getting health care in his life because of Crohn's disease.
"I was denied twice, even being a member of a famous rock band," McCready said in a statement accompanying the video. "The people who don't have those kind of resources, they are stuck, they have no choices. But now, we can’t be denied insurance because of something we can’t change -- our illnesses. We have choices, we can be insured, and we can focus on having a life."
As text at the end of the video notes, McCready is not advocating support for President Barack Obama, but rather all like-minded politicians who believe in affordable and inclusive health care coverage.
McCready and his bandmates have long been outspoken about their political leanings. Earlier this year, Pearl Jam lead singer Eddie Vedder called Mitt Romney's infamous 47 percent comment "very upsetting." The band also supported Obama in 2008 and backed John Kerry against George W. Bush in 2004.
Watch McCready's video above (the song in the clip is called "Inside Job" and features lyrics written by McCready). For more information, head over to PearlJam.com.
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