PNHP Western Washington
Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 17, 2009
By unanimous vote, the Seattle City Council today passed a Resolution sponsored by Councilmember Nick Licata, to ask the Washington State Congressional delegation to support two single-payer bills that would create a national health program. Congressman Jim McDermott has introduced HR 1200, the American Health Security Act, and Congressman John Conyers HR 676, the United States National Health Care Act.
Both bills would provide comprehensive health insurance for all Americans, the care provided though the existing private delivery system. They would replace private insurance with guaranteed coverage, funded through the tax system. Studies indicate these bills would cover everyone while reducing overall cost and establish a unified health care system.
Sponsor Nick Licata indicated that in this time of severe economic stress, a national solution to our health care crisis is especially important and would fulfill the Council’s duty to protect all Seattle residents from health and financial disaster.
Seattle becomes the 49th City and Municipal government to pass such a resolution.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Nick Licata, Seattle City Councilmember
David McLanahan, MD, Coordinator, PNHP Western Washington Chapter
The time for real healthcare reform is now
By City Councilmember Nick Licata
West Seattle Herald
February 20, 2009
(Editor’s note: This opinion piece was sent to this newspaper from Seattle City Council member Nick Licata as part of his Urban Politics Newsletter.)
On Tuesday, Feb. 17 the Seattle City Council affirmed their unanimous support for universal access to quality health care. In doing so, Seattle joined 24 other cities and counties and 18 states passing similar resolutions.
I authored and sponsored this resolution upon the request of the Washington chapter of Physicians for a National Health Plan (PNHP).
Resolution 31111 urges the U.S. Congress to enact legislation to establish and implement this right by adopting HR 676, the U.S. National Health Insurance Act, proposed by Representative John Conyers or HR 1200, the American Health Security Act, proposed by Representative Jim McDermott.
Both bills are the “single-payer” model, which would guarantee everyone access to all medically necessary care, including prescription drugs, with no co-pays or deductibles. Only the single-payer model contains costs by eliminating the administrative waste and bureaucracy associated with the private insurance industry, and it would assure patients their personal choice of doctor and hospital.
The resolution also requests our Washington State Congressional delegation to support these bills.
Other city councils calling for the bill’s passage include those in Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, San Francisco and Louisville, Ky. The U.S. Conference of Mayors at its June meeting in Miami passed a similar resolution. Local government is closer to the people and their health care struggles than most elected officials.
We see the real impacts of our communities and constituents suffering. Additionally, the costs to the City of Seattle of providing health-care benefits to its employees have risen while City revenue has not kept pace. Here are some sobering facts:
An estimated 160,000, 15.6 percent of King County residents less than 65 years of age, do not have health insurance.
The number of uninsured children in Washington State has reached the highest level in more than a decade; 3 percent of children in King County are uninsured.
Seattle’s community health clinics provide treatment for individuals regardless of their ability to pay and approximately 60 percent of their new patients are uninsured costing King County $139,821,202 in 2006.
A recent letter from PNHP to the previous Secretary-designate Tom Daschle, Health and Human Services says: Candidly, we are alarmed by some comments by members of the Senate and by the Obama transition team that suggest that the single-payer option is being excluded from consideration – is ‘off the table’ – in the health reform debate…other proposals “share the fatal flaw of preserving a central role for the investor-owned health insurance industry in a private-public financing mix.
“This approach simply won’t work, as numerous state-based experiments patterned after this model have shown. These plans always fail because they are unable to control costs.”
http://www.westseattleherald.com/2009/02/19/opinion/time-real-healthcare-reform-now
Seattle City Council Endorses HR 676
The Seattle City Council has joined the growing nationwide movement of cities, counties, and state legislatures to urge Congress to pass HR 676, national single payer healthcare, introduced by Congressman John Conyers (D-MI).
The cities, counties, and states endorsing HR 676 (including Tuskeegee, AL; Warren County, TN; Lorain, OH; Erie, PA; Indianapolis, IN; and the Kentucky House of Representatives) are listed at http://unionsforsinglepayer.org/more
Many of the resolutions passed are available at that website. We urge everyone to take similar action in your city, county or state. This is a good way to build the support for HR 676. Our unions can lead the way to make HR 676 politically possible!
The resolution can be linked here:
http://clerk.ci.seattle.wa.us/~scripts/nph-brs.exe?s1=&s2=&s3=31111&s4=&Sect4=AND&l=20&Sect2=THESON&Sect3=PLURON&Sect5=RESN1&Sect6=HITOFF&d=RES3&p=1&u=%2F%7Epublic%2Fresn1.htm&r=1&f=G
#30#
In the 110th Congress, HR 676 had 93 co-sponsors in addition to Conyers.
HR 676 has been endorsed by 481 union organizations in 49 states including 118 Central Labor Councils and Area Labor Federations and 39 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, NY, NV & MA).
For further information, a list of union endorsers, or a sample
endorsement resolution, contact:
Distributed by
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://unionsforsinglepayerHR676.org
02/20/09