Washington

The Congressional push for healthcare reform is now picking up speed, and the stakes could not be higher for working people. Our current hodgepodge system of health insurance is grossly overpriced, full of loopholes crafted by the insurance companies so they can refuse to pay claims, and fails completely to cover almost 50 million people. It's time to give this failed and costly system the heave-ho and replace it with a single-payer system.

Vemont Senator Bernie Sanders (I) has launched an online petition [1] in support of urgently needed single payer healthcare reform. The battle for real reform is being opposed by the insurance and hospital industry in one of the largest lobbying efforts in modern history. Virtually all Republican lawmakers, and a significant slice of the Democrats, are in the pay of the healthcare industry and are doing their best to block real reform. This crew does not do what is right -- they only do right when they are forced to. It's time to force these front men for the health insurance companies to either allow positive change to move forward, or get out of the way.

Sen. Sanders is a long-time supporter of UE members and working people all across Vermont and the nation. Please give him the support he needs in this important work.

For more information on the current healthcare reform battle visit the websites of:

Leadership Conference for Guaranteed Health Care [2]

Labor for Single Payer [3]

Physicians for a National Health Program [4]

Healthcare Now! [5]