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Lobby Day 2009
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Retirees Lobby Congress on Health Care Reform
Reject Taxation of Benefits, Support Stronger Medicare, Public Plan Option
For Immediate Release
Nearly 550 retirees, visiting Washington for the Alliance for Retired Americans Legislative Conference, will travel to Capitol Hill today to lobby their home state elected officials in advance of key votes on health care reform.
In their nearly 200 scheduled appointments, Alliance members will outline the retiree stake in this year's health care debate. More specifically, they will advocate for:
- Ending taxpayer subsidies to private
insurance companies which run Medicare
Advantage programs. This 20 percent
overpayment costs all Medicare beneficiaries an
extra $3 per month in premiums;
- Opposing calls to tax health care benefits,
as this would cause a reduction in benefits and
penalize both workers and retirees who
currently have coverage;
- Repealing the prohibition against Medicare
negotiating volume discounts with the
pharmaceutical companies;
- Creating the opportunity for early retirees
(age 55-64) to buy-in to Medicare;
- Establishing a public plan option to
compete against private health insurance plans;
and
- Including the CLASS Act (S. 697 H.R. 1721) in health care reform to help Americans with the daunting costs of long-term care.
Also today, Wisconsin Alliance for Retired Americans president Leon Burzynski will testify at a Senate Aging Committee hearing, "Social Security: Keeping the Promise in the 21st Century."
During the four-day conference, Alliance members have heard from Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, key members of Congress, and leaders of labor and other progressive groups. Alliance members are taking part in workshops and training sessions to improve their grassroots organizing skills around this year’s health care debate.
"Members of the Alliance for Retired
Americans are lifelong activists. They
bring such incredible energy, enthusiasm, and
passion to their work. They will be
educating and mobilizing their neighbors in the
coming weeks because they know that our country
will never be a just society until every
American has access to quality, affordable
health care," said Alliance president Barbara
J. Easterling, the former Secretary-Treasurer
of the Communications Workers of
America.
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Contact: David Blank, (202) 669-4599 or dblank@retiredamericans.org