Putting the Movement Back into the Union Movement

with

Sara Nelson, President of the Association of Flight Attendants who denounced Trump’s government shutdown for endangering airline security and forcing workers to labor without pay and told her fellow labor leaders, “to end this shutdown with a general strike!” she became America’s Most Powerful Flight Attendant and a rising star of the labor movement.

and

Judy Sheridan-Gonzalez, President of the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA), New York's largest nurses' union which has become known for their support of Medicare for All. They’ve taken their service-oriented union work and further extended it for community needs.

and

Bianca Cunningham a staff writer and organizer at Labor Notes Magazine who got her start in the labor movement as a Verizon retail worker—she was a leader in the 2014 drive that won a union at seven stores, breaking into wireless retail for the first time in company history. Those workers went on to win their first union contract when they joined landline workers in the 2016 Verizon strike.

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All about ‘Medicare for All’ and Can it Provide Universal Access to Health Care!

with
Donald E. Moore, MD, is a primary care physician and is on the Board of Directors of the NY Metro Chapter of Physicians for a National Health Care Plan

and

Judy Sheridan-Gonzalez, RN, President of the NYS Nurses Association

and

Steffie Woolhandler, MD, is a primary care physician, professor of public health and health policy at Hunter College, and clinical professor at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Secretary of the Physicians for a National Health Care Plan
 
Today, more than 30 million Americans still don’t have health insurance and even more are underinsured. Even for those with insurance, costs are so high that medical bills are the number one cause of bankruptcy in the United States. Incredibly, we spend significantly far more of our national GDP on this inadequate health care system per person than any other major country. And despite doing so, Americans have worse health outcomes and a higher infant mortality rate than countries that spend much less on health care.

Because “Medicare for All” or what has also been referred to as single-payer system is so much in the news, we’re bringing you a live explainer with our experts.

They’ll discuss the current Medicare program.  And what about coverage for long-term care expenses and  coverage of hearing, dental, vision or foot care?  And what’s wrong with expanding ObamaCare – wouldn’t that be easier than passing Medicare-for-All? 

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We’ll clear up the often-confusing Medicare for All debate, including its history, prospects and terminology.  Medicare for All is a rallying cry for progressives, but even when the Democratic presidential candidates claim to support it there are shades of difference such as the role of Medicare Advantage programs, and the nuances matter – our experts will help unravel the differences.

Some use the term Medicare for All to mean a much less drastic change to the U.S. health care system, such as a “public option” that would offer specific groups of people — perhaps those over age 50 or consumers purchasing coverage on the insurance marketplaces — the opportunity to buy into Medicare coverage

What about the plan offered by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), in which the government would be in charge of paying for all health care — although doctors, hospitals and other health care providers would remain private. And what would happen to union negotiated health care plans?

So, is eliminating private insurance with a move to Medicare for All the answer?  How can be build a Medicare for All Plan? Is a Medicare for All Plan the solution for universal health care?  

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