Dear Daniel: Former Senator Alan Simpson, who called Social Security a milk cow with 310 million tits, clearly doesn't have the facts on Social Security if he is implying we're all milking the system. Simpson co-chairs the Commission with Erskine Bowles, who thinks the government is spending way too much, claiming, "All of our revenue is completely consumed by entitlements." Bowles told a meeting of North Carolina bankers in March, "We're going to mess with Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security." Commission member and CEO of Honeywell, David Cote, wants to end retiree health benefits and raise out of pocket costs for workers to an annual $8,500 at his plant in Illinois. When workers objected, pointing to the massive health dangers they face in making uranium hexafluoride, Honeywell's response was to lock them out. Healthcare-NOW! is outraged by the Commission's lack of understanding of how our social insurance plans work and the disrespect for human needs. This Commission is stacked with people who will recommend regressive policies to degrade the contract that the government has with working people. Implementing a single-payer, improved Medicare for all system would be a long-term deficit reduction plan that deserves attention from anybody giving serious consideration to the nation's economic woes. Given that the Commission now sitting has been unwilling to put all deficit reduction solutions on the table, they have not met the charge given them by the President. The bottom line: this Commission was created by Executive Order from the White House, and it will take an Executive Order to disband it before it destroys our social insurance programs. Join Healthcare-NOW! by telling President Obama that the Deficit Commission must go! Call the White House (202-456-1414) and say, "Disband the Deficit Commission. Co-Chairs Simpson and Bowles along with Commission member David Cote are not qualified to improve Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. Instead, they want to threaten these programs with cuts and privatization. I say disband the Deficit Commission and expand Medicare to all." Thanks for making the call. Please let us know how it went.
For Improved Medicare for All, | |
Healthcare-NOW! - 800-453-1305 - 1315 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107 |
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