HCAN Doesn't Support Single Payer - So Why Does The AFL-CIO Take Orders From Them?

The leader of Oregon's AFL-CIO, Tom Chamberlain, told me during the congressional health insurance reform debates, "I take my marching orders from HCAN."

Health Care for America Now, HCAN, says, "The fight moves to Oregon... Under the law, individual states have a lot of leeway in how they set up health reform to serve you. That means we'll need to stay vigilant and organized to make sure the insurance companies don't take over the process."

HCAN, Wake Up - The Insurance Companies And Big Pharma Have Already Taken Over The Process.

If HCAN didn't want the for-profit health insurance industry and giant greedy pharmaceutical companies to take over the process HCAN should have supported Single Payer and put them out of the game as all of these organizations have said by supporting Single Payer resolutions.

AFL-CIO

AFSCME District Council 75

Amalgamated Transit Union Local 757

American Federation of Government Employees Local 2157

American Federation of Teachers Local 5017

City of Portland

Democratic Party of Oregon

IATSE

Mad As Hell Doctors

Multnomah County Commission

Oregon Academy of Family Physicians

Oregon Education Association

Oregon Federation of Nurses & Health Professionals

Oregon Nurses Association

Oregon Teamsters Local 206

Painters Local 10

State Council of Machinists (IAM)

Chicago Teamsters Local 705 UPS Steward Joe Balkis said, "UPS raised the health and welfare payments for our retirees from $50 for a single to over $157 monthly, over $315 for a member and spouse, and over $400 for a family plan... We can see by this where they are going in the next contract negotiations. UPS pulled this jack move and in the next contract the company will want to put us in a lesser plan or raise the payments. Thats why we should pass single payer health care, and the international unions should support single payer health care and take industrial action to press for it."

This same story is and will be repeated in every contract negotiation with both private and public employers. Public employer health insurance contributions that range from $1,000 to $2,000 per month are unsustainable, cause a diminishing of public services and are angering taxpayers, especially those out of work or without health insurance. The recently passed Health Insurance Reform bill by our congress and the 2007 Health Insurance Reform bill passed by the Oregon legislature CANNOT and WILL NOT stop escalating premiums and a push back by financially strapped employers, including cites, counties and school districts, to not pay. A Single Payer plan at the state or federal level would solve this problem. Single Payer is NOT going to happen at the federal level anytime in the foreseeable future. However, Single Payer is still a possibility at the state level in Oregon and elsewhere in the United STATES of America.

You Cannot Serve Two Masters

The AFL-CIO and other organizations that have endorsed Single Payer Resolutions CANNOT at the same time take, "marching orders from HCAN" an organization that opposes Single Payer.

In Oregon legislative candidate interview questionnaires neither the AFL-CIO nor the AFT asked a single question about a candidate's support for Single Payer.

Oregon's AFL-CIO leader, Tom Chamberlain, threatened to send his lawyers after me if I continued to write that the AFL-CIO had passed a resolution in support of Single Payer.

Chamberlain was angry with me for exposing the FACT that the recently appointed state senator to my district, Chip Shields, and his wife, who is a nurse and a former but not a current member of any union, BOTH oppose Single Payer.

You're Either On The Single Payer Bus Or Off The Bus

There are 535 members of congress who have already spoken to and voted upon Health Insurance reform. Neither the House nor the Senate was ever given the opportunity to vote on Single Payer.

There are 90 members of the Oregon legislature. They have a unanimous record, Democrats - including my opponent Tina Kotek - and Republicans, of not only opposing Single Payer but denying access to the legislative debate to those who are Single Payer advocates.

If there are no state legislators elected who support Single Payer in 2010 then there is NO chance for Single Payer health care reform in Oregon or any other state during the 2011 legislative session.

If the Unions For Single Payer movement and others who support Single Payer are serious then they need to show evidence that they have supported state legislative candidates who will carry the Single Payer banner.

Good luck and good health.

Richard Ellmyer

Candidate for the North Portland House seat in the May 18, 2010 Democratic primary.

http://www.ellmyer4staterep.com

I'm sure the list of those who receive Unions For Single Payer emails would benefit from reading this message.

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From: Steve Neuberger <steve@nwfco.org>

Date: April 9, 2010 10:07:53 PM PDT

To: "Richard W. Ellmyer"

Subject: Re: Keeping up the fight in Oregon

Thank you for your activism- you are correct that HCAN hasn't supported single payer. Our principles, since our founding in July of 2008, call for the choice of a public option. I don't know of any efforts to instruct any groups to "abandon their resolutions in support of single payer". We appreciate the efforts of any organizations to pursue health care for all.

Steve Neuberger

Oregon Health Care for America Now

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On Fri, Apr 9, 2010 at 3:41 PM, Richard Ellmyer wrote:

Hi Steve:

I would be more impressed if HCAN were supporting candidates like me who support Single Payer as these folks do: