Achieve Universal Health Care

[Meshuga]

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, an estimated 46 million Americans, or 15% of the population, were uninsured in 2007. 9 million of the uninsured were children, and more than 8 out of 10 are from working families. In December 2008, 11.1 million Americans were unemployed and actively seeking work, and experts predict that even more will lose their jobs in the coming months. The growing number of uninsured individuals reflects the urgent need for drastic health care reform to ensure that everyone is sufficiently covered.

Jewish tradition is emphatic on the importance of the community providing health care for its vulnerable members. It is for this reason that Maimonides, a revered Jewish scholar, listed health care first on his list of the ten most important communal services that a city had to offer to its residents. When members of a society at large are ill, our responsibility expands to ensure that medical resources are available at an affordable cost to those who need them.

The United States National Health Insurance Act (H.R. 676) would create a publicly-funded health care system by modifying the current Medicare program and expanding its eligibility to include all U.S. residents. Ultimately, H.R. 676 would convert the health care coverage system in the United States from a market-based, multi-payer system to a single-payer system. The government would insure all Americans, who would be covered for primary, emergency, and long-term care, prescription drugs, mental health services, chiropractic treatment, dental care and vision correction. Individuals would be able to purchase additional insurance and elective procedures, but private health insurers would be prohibited from selling coverage that duplicates the public program.

In emails, faxes, and phone calls, please contact your Representative and urge him or her to bring H.R. 676 to the floor. The Capitol Switchboard can be reached at 202.224.3121. You can also send an e-mail by entering your Zip Code.

http://action.rac.org/t/4234/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=355