skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The latest on the Key Bridge collapse, New York puts forth legislation to get clean energy projects on the grid and Wisconsin and other states join a federal summer food program to help feed kids across the country.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Republicans float conspiracy theories on the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge, South Carolina s congressional elections will use a map ruled unconstitutional, and the Senate schedules an impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Myorkas.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

AFSCME: Tell Congress Public Health Care Option is Critical

play audio
Play

Thursday, June 25, 2009   

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - As the debate in Congress heats up over health care reform, Floridians are joining people from across the nation in rallying in Washington D.C. today. Doug Martin, legislative and communications director for Florida AFSCME Council 79, is among those at the event.

Even though most of his union members are insured, Martin says he is fighting for the nearly 2 million Floridians who have no medical insurance and/or no access to health care. A public insurance option is critical to their future care, he stresses.

"When health care reform is done, we want affordable health care insurance. We want affordable health care for everyone. Ultimately, unless there is a strong public plan, we're not going to have health care reform."

Martin says it is generally agreed that the current system is broken and risks the lives of millions of uninsured. He says a public option plan, similar to Medicaid, makes financial sense because its estimated overhead is six percent, compared to the 20 percent overhead for private insurance coverage and HMOs. Still, opponents to reform say the nation cannot afford to insure everyone, and some private insurance companies have said a public option could drive them out of business.

Competition from a public plan will force private insurers to reduce customers' out-of-pocket expenses, which have grown to more than $3,500 a year, according to the Secretary of Health, Martin says.

"Having the competition of a public plan will cause insurers to lower their costs and to provide better service."

Martin says everyone has a right to quality health care, regardless of their employment, their health or their income.

"All Americans should have access to quality, affordable health care. This should not be contingent upon where you work; you should, by virtue of being an American, be able to get the health care thatyou need."

More information about the rally is available at www.healthcareforamericanow.org.




get more stories like this via email

more stories
Many factors affect a customer's bill amount, including energy usage, weather, and the number of days in a billing period, according to Arizona Public Service. (Jason Yoder/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …


Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …


More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social media platform X temporarily shutdown searches of "Taylor Swift" following the release of explicit deepfake images in early 2024. (Mdv Edwards/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

Social Issues

play sound

A 2023 study from the University of Nebraska Medical Center concluded the number of Nebraskans with a mental health or substance abuse disorder has pr…

Environment

play sound

A farm group is helping Iowa agriculture producers find ways to reduce the amount of nitrogen they use on their crops. Excess nitrates can wind up …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021