Historic Health Care Legislation in Maryland Part of National Campaign to Expand Health Care Coverage for Working Families
Posted on: Wednesday, 6 April 2005, 18:00 CDT
WASHINGTON, April 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Building on the success of its Maryland campaign in passing the Fair Share Health Care legislation, Americans for Health Care is working in states across the country to pass similar bills to ensure that large, profitable corporations pay their fair share of their employees' health care. The organization is also planning to support efforts to pass a Fair Share Health Care bill in the U.S. Congress.
"Voters in Maryland were the driving force behind our success in Maryland," says Jonathan Parker, campaign director of Americans for Health Care. "They're tired of facing skyrocketing health care premiums while the Wal-Marts of the world make their profits at the taxpayers' expense. That's why we're confident that what happened in Maryland is just the tip of the iceberg. Health Care Voters are standing up and urging their elected officials to hold companies like Wal-Mart accountable."
As part of its advocacy effort, Americans for Health Care has contacted Health Care Voters across the country to let them know about the victory in Maryland. The organization is urging these voters to contact their own state legislators to ask, "If this can happen in Maryland, why hasn't it happened in my state?"
Americans for Health Care's Maryland campaign drafted the Fair Share legislation that will be used as a model in other states. The organization currently has staff on the ground in eight states, and is laying the groundwork in those and others to pass legislation to hold large, profitable corporations responsible for providing affordable health care to their employees.
In Maryland, the organization organized lobby days, held rallies, and used paid media to keep Health Care Voters informed of the Fair Share Health Care legislation. The plan levels the playing field for Maryland businesses by requiring employers with 10,000 or more employees to spend at least 8% of their payroll on health care for their employees. The measure would ensure that those responsible employers that provide health insurance to their employees would no longer have to compete with those companies that do not. It garnered the support of business leaders such as Giant Food as well as key elected officials.
Americans for Health Care is a project of SEIU, the nation's largest health care union. In states across the country, we are uniting working families, small business owners, seniors, health care professionals, community leaders, and policymakers to secure affordable, quality health care for every man, woman and child in America. http://www.imahealthcarevoter.org/
Americans for Health Care
CONTACT: Stephanie Mueller of Americans for Health Care,+1-202-326-0842, or cell: +1-202-277-5882
Web site: http://www.imahealthcarevoter.org/http://www.seiu.org/
Source: PRNewswire
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