Next week I am going to lie down and "die" for healthcare reform, a fitting action for someone who has fought for healthcare reform all my life.

Healthcare is personal for me. Both my siblings were born with "pre-existing conditions." My nine-day old brother had open heart surgery. My sister takes a daily pill to replace the thyroid gland she was born without.

I am 26 years old. Before I began graduate school, I was uninsured for some time. I eventually found coverage I could afford, but it would not have covered my brother or my sister.

Two years ago, my father passed away from cancer. Navigating the healthcare system was hard. But watching my father get sick was even hardest thing I have ever done. My family focused most of our attention on him-but I am still bitter we had to spend so much time fighting to get him the care he needed.

In high school and college, I was a health educator and activist. I was inspired every day by young people across the country committed to improving their own health, the health of their peers, and making their voice heard in the policy arena. We are still fighting to ensure that young people have access to comprehensive health information. An amendment supporting failed abstinence-only programs is attached to the Senate version of the healthcare bill. Defeating this policy is a battle we cannot afford to lose.

I worked at a community clinic, saw families who had been devastated by illness come through the doors to finally find support. Why is our system set up where so many families file bankruptcy every year because someone gets sick? Things need to change, and I am here to be part of that change.

My path led me to Berkeley in the concurrent degree program in the School of Public Health and the School of Social Welfare. I am a member of the Berkeley Students for Healthcare Reform. We stand for a national public option, restricting drug companies from exclusive patent rights and fair health insurance rates for working and middle class families.

On Tuesday, Oct. 27, there will be a "Die-In" demonstration in Sproul Plaza. At noon, 45 people will "die," representing the 45,000 yearly deaths attributed to lack of health insurance. Stand up with us on Tuesday and "die" for healthcare reform that makes sense for every American. The kind we have all been waiting for.