On the Line with International President
Joe Hansen
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It’s not surprising that the number one issue for most Americans, including UFCW members, is the unraveling of our health care system. In the last issue of Working America, I discussed the economic factors fueling the health care crisis. In this issue, I want to offer a look at the human stories behind the numbers.
When I think of our current health care delivery system, I see Cathi Schafer, a UFCW member, and her father. Their stories illustrate—-better than any statistics ever could—-the haphazard nature of American health care, and why it calls out for comprehensive reform.
Cathi has been a member of UFCW Local 1428 of Claremont, Calif., for 28 years. Ten years ago, she was diagnosed with breast cancer, but thanks to her union health care plan and preventive care, her cancer was detected early. Her health insurance allowed her to participate in an aggressive treatment program at a facility that specializes in cancer treatment. She underwent a double mastectomy, chemotherapy, and a stem cell treatment that took eight months to complete.
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But things were markedly different for Cathi’s father. Fifteen years after a successful open-heart surgery, an unexpected job transition left him without health insurance and unable to receive needed ongoing care and monitoring by specialists. Cathi took on the financial responsibility of helping her father pay for his care and expensive prescription drug regimen. Cathi and her family moved in with her parents to save money for her father’s medical care. In the end, though, that wasn’t enough. Her family was squeezed tighter and tighter financially until her father was forced to turn to the state for his medical treatment.
This was a sharp blow to his dignity. Her father had always been self-sufficient, and it hurt his pride to have to rely on taxpayers. It was also a sharp blow to his health. He no longer had access to doctors familiar with his case. His regular treatments turned irregular. His conditioned worsened, and, tragically, he died—not because it was his time, but because he didn’t have health insurance.
Cathi and her father’s experiences stand at opposite ends of our health care spectrum. Cathi’s union contract provided the benefits that saved her life, and her father’s inability to afford insurance contributed to his death.
For people like Cathi’s father, the employer-based system that has supported us for over 40 years is unraveling, and that impacts every one of us, especially at the bargaining table. We need real health care reform, and we need it now.
UFCW members are especially knowledgeable about how rising health care costs dominate contract negotiations. Cathi and UFCW members like her know that health care is just too great a problem to fix at the bargaining table. Only national health care reform can shift the focus from health care benefits at the bargaining table to other important issues like wages.
As union members, you have the knowledge and the power to make a difference in the fight for comprehensive health care reform. You know the pros and cons of different health care plans. You’ve seen the Wal-Mart effect in action. Tens of thousands of you have walked a picket line to save health care. There may be no other group of Americans who know the value of affordable health care quite like UFCW members.
That’s why I encourage all of you, if you haven’t already, to get involved with the Citizens Health Care Working Group. Go to www.ufcw4healthcare.org to learn how you can have a direct impact on the health care debate. You can take a brief online survey and participate in community meetings being held across the country.We all have a stake in the outcome of this debate.The opportunity to have a voice is now.
The employer-based system thathas supported us for over 40 years is unraveling, and that impacts everyone of us at the bargaining table. We need real health care reform,and we need it now.
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New Contract Settlements |
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Member Privileges |
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Legal Advisor |
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Safety and Health Facts |
| In this issue: | |
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UFCW Pride Index |
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UFCW Pride in St. Joe |
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UNITY & COMMUNITY |
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Taking Health Care Off the Table |
