AUGUSTA -- Calling it the first order of business for a new president, speakers from a collection of advocacy groups launched a campaign on the Statehouse steps Tuesday morning urging politicians in Augusta and Washington, D.C., to act on healthcare.

"We’re asking one question," said Ali Vander Zanden, a healthcare organizer with the Maine People’s Alliance. "Which side are you on?"

Vander Zanden urged politicians to choose between siding with a healthcare system that supports profits for insurance companies or a system that ensures coverage for all.

A cadre of signholders lining the steps behind her, Vander Zanden and others called on state and national leaders to pass healthcare legislation.

"In our vision, the quality goes up and the price goes down," she said.

"We certainly don’t intend to wait another 30 years for guarantees of affordable healthcare," said Laura Harper, director of public policy for the Maine Women’s Lobby. "We’re tired of waiting."