Statement by AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka on House Health Care Legislation

ProSense

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Thu Oct-29-09 05:37 PM
Original message

Statement by AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka on House Health Care Legislation

Statement by AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka on House Health Care Legislation

October 29, 2009

Today's release of a progressive health care reform bill by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi puts America's working families one big step closer to getting quality and affordable health care, and it's a model for fair financing. The leadership in the House has crafted a fiscally responsible bill that will provide coverage to 96 percent of Americans and successfully works to lower costs, increase choice, expand coverage and stop insurance company abuses. It will reduce our deficit by $30 billion over the next 10 years.

The inclusion of a public plan option ensures that we reduce skyrocketing health care costs by holding insurance companies accountable and forcing them to compete. The public option also ensures that all Americans can get coverage no matter what.

The bill does not attempt to finance reform on the backs of the working middle class. In addition, the employer responsibility provision ensures a fair share of financing from employers and prevents employers from increasing costs for everyone by dumping people into subsidized programs. We look forward to working with the leadership in both the House and the Senate to continue to strengthen these provisions as we move forward to pass real health care reform.

We strongly believe that these fair financing elements should be included in the final legislation in order to ensure that we are not asking those who struggle to pay for health care to pay even more.

In the coming weeks, working families will continue to reach out to members of Congress to help push health care reform over the finish line.

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bbinacan

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Thu Oct-29-09 05:48 PM
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1. I would guess that the tax on

"cadillac plans" was dropped?

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jenmito

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Thu Oct-29-09 05:51 PM
Response to Reply #1

3. The House bill taxes the very rich instead. n/t

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jenmito

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Thu Oct-29-09 05:50 PM
Response to Original message

2. K&R for more hard work.

:hi:

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ProSense

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Thu Oct-29-09 06:22 PM
Response to Reply #2

4. Thanks. n/t

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hootinholler

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Thu Oct-29-09 07:32 PM
Response to Original message

5. 96%? Why not 100%!

I'm tired of giving ground!

-Hoot

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DrToast

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Thu Oct-29-09 07:41 PM
Response to Reply #5

6. Because some people will refuse to buy insurance even if you give them money

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Honeycombe8

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Thu Oct-29-09 08:11 PM
Response to Reply #5

8. Errrrr....what ground do you have to give? Currently, you have almost nothing.

Someone offers you a life raft. Do you refuse because you want a yacht?

No. You take the raft, and then you head out on the ocean in the hope of finding that yacht one day.

The House bill is a good bill. The approval stamps are beginning to pile up, from Dean to the labor unions, to organizations that have been fighting for health care reform for decades. It's not first on the list of what anyone wants. But it's good and will go a long way to helping millions of people and altering a sick system. That is the goal, isn't it?

We were never going to get single payer. No one ever promised they could deliver on that. Mainly because most Americans don't want it. This is a democracy. Although many politicians are in the pockets of the ins. cos. and big pharma, the politicians have eeked out a reform bill that actually will do a lot of good things, and will include a public option.

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hootinholler

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Fri Oct-30-09 07:48 AM
Response to Reply #8

11. I disagree on single payer totally

If I'm offered a raft they better be in the raft too. If they're on a yacht and offer me the raft, yeah, I'll take it, but that's dance with death they are forcing me into. I generally don't start a horserace by whacking the horse's kneecaps with a 2x4 either, which is what our party effectively did.

So much ground was given before the debate got started. Oh, and *every* american I've spoken with who understands it wants single payer, even the conservatives. They understand it would be good for business and cheaper.

I really don't see the lots of good things it will do yet, I have trouble absorbing 1900 pages quickly and am concerned about what's lurking in a bill that large. Also when will it do all these good things? 2013? How will the poor pay for the mandated insurance buy? Tax relief? You have to make enough to pay that much in taxes before you get the relief.

-Hoot

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FrenchieCat

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Thu Oct-29-09 07:48 PM
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7. He's been out in the trenches.......

he knows how hard this has been to get....
be knows the millions that have been spent to keep this
bill from getting to where it is.....

He's grateful that after 50 fucking years, we are getting much more
than many ever thought we would. He gets it! :thumbsup:

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Cha

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Thu Oct-29-09 08:47 PM
Response to Reply #7

9. I Know he has.. Good Point!

Edited on Thu Oct-29-09 08:48 PM by Cha

People sitting at their computers just don't get it.

Edit~ Lot of people don't but many do.

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babylonsister

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Fri Oct-30-09 07:26 AM
Response to Original message

10. It's great to see this-thanks, as usual, ProSense! nt

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bread_and_roses

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Fri Oct-30-09 08:19 AM
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12. My bet is that Trumpka knows this Bill sucks, but Labor wants to move on to labor

Nothing else is happening till health care is done, and labor has another agenda. While labor has fought very hard for a strong public option, this Bill, while not doing much good, won't at least - as far as I can see right now - do much harm to those who already have insurance. Labor wants labor law reform; that will be a big fight too, and they are willing to go-along to get-along with this in the (probably futile) hope of keeping Obama sweet for Employee Free Choice Act.

This Bill is an appalling outcome for all the work - in which Labor has been at the forfront, along with HCAN - we've done.

The electeds have plainly shown who they work for, and it ain't us. The Democrats, having to put up or shut up once in power, bowed down before their Corporate Masters. A few years from now the Right will have a nice big juicy example of "expensive, beuacratic, boon-doggle" of "Big Gubm't" to attack. A lousy outcome for all our work.

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derby378

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Fri Oct-30-09 09:07 AM
Response to Reply #12

14. I don't think Trumka even glanced at the bill

Edited on Fri Oct-30-09 09:07 AM by derby378

If he did, he'd see that the "public option" is actually a "pauper's option."

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Nicholas D Wolfwood

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Fri Oct-30-09 09:09 AM
Response to Reply #14

15. Or he sees that you're wrong. (nt)

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derby378

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Fri Oct-30-09 09:14 AM
Response to Reply #15

16. Then prove me wrong

Tick, tick, tick...

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Nicholas D Wolfwood

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Fri Oct-30-09 09:24 AM
Response to Reply #16

17. Let's see...

-It covers 96% of Americans.
-Contrary to popular belief, it does allow inclusion of the public option to nearly all Americans eventually, albeit slowly. (I highly suggest you actually read the bill.)
-It reduces the deficit.
-It break the anti-trust exemption for insurers.
-Pre-existing conditions will be a thing of the past.
-It doesn't tax the lower or middle classes.
-It supports small businesses.

No, it isn't single payer. No, it doesn't kick in until 2013 (which is how the bill gets a grade that makes it palatable for passage.) No, it doesn't distribute ponies to all Americans. But it does a lot of great things that are a necessary life-preserver to millions of Americans and it's far, far better than the status quo.

Your turn. Tick, tick, tick.

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derby378

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Fri Oct-30-09 09:36 AM
Response to Reply #17

18. "Slowly" isn't going to cut it

People are dying from private health insurance now. And the House bill doesn't prevent their premiums from being jacked up even higher, last I heard. On top of that, premiums for the Pauper's Option will not be pegged to Medicare rates, but instead to the rates offered by Aetna, UnitedHealthCare, Blue Cross, etc. That's if you're destitute enough to even qualify for it.

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Nicholas D Wolfwood

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Fri Oct-30-09 09:38 AM
Response to Reply #18

19. It's slowly or nothing.

There are no other options that would get the bill to a price tag that would actually pass. So it's suffer short-term or suffer forever. Apparently, you're choosing to suffer forever. Nicely done.

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derby378

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Fri Oct-30-09 09:55 AM
Response to Reply #19

21. I reject your white flag of surrender in favor of this one...

You deserve better than this. So does your family and loved ones. Fight in any way that you can. Never give up.

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Nicholas D Wolfwood

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Fri Oct-30-09 10:12 AM
Response to Reply #21

22. You come up with a path to the votes, I'll be on board.

Frankly, we couldn't even get much better in the House, let alone the Senate. I don't see any fight to be had.

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bread_and_roses

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Fri Oct-30-09 09:48 AM
Response to Reply #17

20. It's a great big gift-wrapped package to the Pharma & Insurance vampires

with a few glitter sprinkles for the public. Once again, the Democrats show themselves to be the scraps and bones Party. I guess for most scraps and bones are better than a scraped plate. We'll never learn, it seems.

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Nicholas D Wolfwood

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Fri Oct-30-09 10:12 AM
Response to Reply #20

23. So why are they still fighting it tooth and nail rather than taking it and running?

Seems a rather large logical fallacy, don't you think?

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bread_and_roses

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Fri Oct-30-09 10:35 AM
Response to Reply #23

24. oh ROFL, get serious

Of course they'll fight it tooth and nail. Like the Banksters, ANY sort of regulation/limitation/oversight is anathama to them. Plus, fighting makes it seem as if the public will actually gain much of anything from this, allowing their Congressional Court Jesters to claim a victory, however pyrrhic is is.

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Nicholas D Wolfwood

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Fri Oct-30-09 10:38 AM
Response to Reply #24

25. Oh I get it - they're going along with it BECAUSE they like it!

That makes PERFECT sense, because they have such a huge track record of doing exactly that. Brilliant.

It's time for you to get some tin foil.

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bread_and_roses

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Fri Oct-30-09 11:17 AM
Response to Reply #25

27. wtf? either i misunderstand you or you me -and as for tin foil, no need - they're blatant

no one needs to conjure up any tin foil or either the Banksters or the Ins/Pharma Vampires - they are out in the open.

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phleshdef

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Fri Oct-30-09 10:38 AM
Response to Reply #15

26. Might as well give up on these non-reality based folks...

...nothing will please them and if somehow their fantasy healthcare bill was passed, they would just raise the bar by having even more unrealistic fantasy goals to reach for. They are instant gratification oriented and, as cliche' as it sounds, can't see the forest for the trees.

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olegramps

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Fri Oct-30-09 08:32 AM
Response to Original message

13. I can see where some are disappointed.

However, President Obama with his prodding of Congress has achieve more than any other president in reforming the health care industry. Every president dating from FDR who attempted to get universal health care was defeated by the insurance industry with the assistance of the AMA. It was called, gasp, socialized medicine,something that was to bring death and destruction to the nation like some dreaded plague. It appears to me that the major objection is that that it doesn't go far enough, i.e., Medicare for All, and do to its short comings will actually result in a worsening of the situation. I looked at the bill but it is so damn long and complex. I will just have to wait and rely on some experts' opinions. If it leads to the eventual destruction of the health care insurance rip off companies then I will applaud it, however, if it in any way subsidizes these bastards than I will be very disappointed. Something has to be done to stop the unquenchable greed of those such as the CEO of United Health getting over $24 million dollars a year in compensation.

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