Broad-based Financing

To spread financing throughout the system and assure that all employers pay their fair share.

Control Costs

Regulate insurance companies, reduce bureaucracy, promote prevention and cost-effective care, and allow government to negotiate drug and other prices.

Cover Everyone

Guarantee quality affordable health care for everyone with comprehensive benefits.

Improve Quality

By promoting preventive care, evidence-based care and safe staffing standards.

Strong Government Role

To set and enforce the rules for insurance companies and providers, and offer a choice of a public insurance plan and private insurance options in addition to employer-based health benefits.

Employers should be responsible for covering their workers.

To guarantee quality affordable health care for all we need to build on our current employer-based system by having employers cover their workers or else contribute to a public trust that covers those without employer coverage.

Guarantee coverage for pre-Medicare eligible retirees.

There are real concerns that the country’s economic woes could accelerate the trend of employers to drop coverage for those who are 55 to 64 and retired. They need to be guaranteed quality affordable coverage like everyone else.

Guarantee people a choice of private and public health insurance plans.

Everyone should be able to select from several private health plans, as many can do now through their employer, and have the option of choosing a public health insurance plan similar to Medicare.

Do not tax the health care benefits of working families.

Making employer-provided health benefits part of taxable income will be a huge tax increase on workers and employers, penalize those who already have insurance, and force many people to lose health coverage.