Health care reform: an educators' issue
Congress and the Obama administration are working toward health insurance reform that gives all Americans more choice and stability in coverage for quality care.
Education Minnesota supports a system that will assure quality, affordable care for all because:
Health care reform is an educators’ issue.
- As costs continue to skyrocket, educators are finding themselves with less insurance coverage for ever-higher prices. Reform is designed to curtail cost increases.
- Expanding coverage to all families will help children come to school healthy and ready to learn.
The current system is unfair and rations health care.
- Unless you have access to a public program, such as Medicare or MinnesotaCare, you only get insurance if your employer includes insurance in your benefits or if you can afford sky-high individual premiums.
- Your insurance company decides what kind of care and even what kind of medicine you get.
Health care reform will provide at least as much choice as you have now. And it will let you stay with your current health care providers if you want.
- If you like the coverage you have, you can keep it.
- If you are uninsured or underinsured, you can gain access to a plan.
Health care reform will end discrimination in insurance coverage.
- People with pre-existing conditions cannot be denied coverage.
- People who have lost their jobs can get affordable coverage.
Reform will curtail cost increases throughout the system.
- Everyone pays now for care to the uninsured in expensive settings such as emergency rooms. Everyone else bears the cost through taxes and higher premiums.
- Universal coverage will save money by giving everyone access to early and preventive care.
August 19, 2009