On October 27, 2012, at its convention in Manitowoc, AFT Wisconsin
endorsed Congressman John Conyers’ bill, HR 676, a national single payer
health care program that would implement Expanded and Improved Medicare
for All.

“AFT-W will … mobilize our members and our community at the grassroots to
encourage other members of the House to sign on as co-sponsors of HR 676
when introduced in the next Congress and to encourage Senators to
introduce a companion bill in the Senate,” the resolution states.
The passage of this resolution was reported by Buzz Davis, AFT Wisconsin
Retiree Council Executive Board Member, who stated that “the membership
understands that single payer health care is the way to go and that
insurance companies should be removed from the equation.”

Davis, a retired state planner, said that taking the Medicare program and
expanding it to everyone is the way to achieve quality health care for
everyone at the best price.

He said that the union also stands strongly against any cuts to Social
Security, Medicare, or Medicaid. “Debt during a recession is not a
problem. Public spending is what needs to be done in order to put people
to work,” he said. He called the current panic over the deficit “a
drummed up crisis.”

He added that the union is fighting hard to rebuild in the wake of
Governor Walker’s attacks on all of Wisconsin’s unions.

AFT Wisconsin, founded in 1931, is a chapter of the American Federation of
Teachers. The union represents 17,000 employees working in public
schools, vocational colleges, universities, and for the state.

HR 676 would institute a single payer health care system by expanding a
greatly improved Medicare to everyone residing in the U. S.

HR 676 would cover every person for all necessary medical care including
prescription drugs, hospital, surgical, outpatient services, primary and
preventive care, emergency services, dental (including oral surgery,
periodontics, endodontics), mental health, home health, physical therapy,
rehabilitation (including for substance abuse), vision care and
correction, hearing services including hearing aids, chiropractic, durable
medical equipment, palliative care, podiatric care, and long term care.

HR 676 ends deductibles and co-payments. HR 676 would save hundreds of
billions annually by eliminating the high overhead and profits of the
private health insurance industry and HMOs.

In the current Congress, HR 676 has 76 co-sponsors in addition to Conyers.

HR 676 has been endorsed by 597 union organizations including 144 Central
Labor Councils/Area Labor Federations and 40 state AFL-CIO’s (KY, PA, CT,
OH, DE, ND, WA, SC, WY, VT, FL, WI, WV, SD, NC, MO, MN, ME, AR, MD-DC, TX,
IA, AZ, TN, OR, GA, OK, KS, CO, IN, AL, CA, AK, MI, MT, NE, NJ, NY, NV &
MA).

For further information, a list of union endorsers, or a sample
endorsement resolution, contact:

Kay Tillow
All Unions Committee for Single Payer Health Care–HR 676
c/o Nurses Professional Organization (NPO)
1169 Eastern Parkway, Suite 2218
Louisville, KY 40217
(502) 636 1551
Email: nursenpo@aol.com
http://unionsforsinglepayer.org
11/12/2012