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Click this link for information on the current status of H.R. 1322.
(The Retiree Health Benefits Protection Act.)
Click Below
H.R. 1322
The Employee Free Choice Act
As you know, our current labor
law system makes it incredibly difficult for
workers to join together and bargain collectively for better wages and
working
conditions. Each year, tens of thousands of American workers are
attacked by their management simply for advocating for
a union on the job.
The Employee Free Choice Act, one of the most important pieces of
legislation of our time, would
restore workers' organizing and bargaining
rights and help rebuild the shrinking American middle class. Here's the
bottom
line: Any presidential candidate who wants CWA's endorsement and the
grassroots support of our members is going to have
to put the Employee Free
Choice Act front and center on his or her campaign agenda.
And it's not enough for a candidate
to say, "As President, I'll sign the
bill when it comes to my desk." We need to hear how these candidates will
lead
the fight to overcome the threat of a Senate filibuster and deliver
EFCA to the Oval Office for that all-important presidential
signature.
To help get this message across, we are asking you to send a postcard to up
to three of the 2008 presidential
candidates. And we're making it
easy--just click on the link below:
http://www.cwa-cope.org/issues/2007/efca-candidates.html
<http://www.unionvoice.org/ct/311-GYY1qPiQ/efcapostcard>
It doesn't stop there. As candidates respond to our postcards, we'll post
their responses on our website.
And we'll keep you up to date about other
news from the campaign trail as well.
After you send your postcards, make
sure you spread the word. Here are some
quick points about what the Employee Free Choice Act does:
*
Allows workers to form unions by signing cards authorizing union
representation.
* Provides mediation
and arbitration for first-contract disputes.
* Establishes stronger penalties for violation of workers' rights
while
they organize a union and during first-contract negotiations.
We're holding every candidate's feet to the fire on
this issue. No one
running for president--Democrat or Republican--should be allowed to dodge
this important issue.
Sign a postcard today and make the candidates declare
their positions on this vital legislation.
http://www.cwa-cope.org/issues/2007/efca-candidates.html
<http://www.unionvoice.org/ct/311-GYY1qPiQ/efcapostcard>
In the coming weeks we'll follow up with the responses from the candidates
on this and other issues that are
important to CWA members.
In Solidarity,
<http://img.getactivehub.com/08/custom_images/cwa_action/larry-sig.gif>
Larry
the Children's Health And Medicare Protection (CHAMP) Act
The U.S. House of Representatives
has an opportunity to improve healthcare
for grandparents, their children and grandchildren through the passage of
H.R.
3162, the Children's Health And Medicare Protection (CHAMP) Act. The
leadership of the House Ways and Means and Energy
and Commerce committees
unveiled on Tuesday evening (July 24) the bill that would improve healthcare
for our generation
and future generations.
Your assistance is needed to write to your U.S. Representative to urge
him/her to support
H.R. 3162. In addition to addressing the healthcare needs
of 11 million uninsured children, the bill would improve several
aspects of
Medicare for older Americans.
A few of the key provisions that the NRLN endorses for Medicare participants
include:
*
Reduce the asset test in Medicare Part D and streamline the application
process, thereby helping millions of Americans
with modest savings gain
access to affordable healthcare;
* Provide an interim solution for physicians facing a
10-percent cut to
Medicare payments on Jan. 1, 2008. According to the American Medical
Association, more than 60 percent
of doctors say they will limit the number
of new Medicare patients they will treat if the cut goes through. The bill
would
block impending cuts in Medicare payments to doctors, giving them a
modest increase in fees in each of the next two years
while Congress tries
to devise a new payment policy;
* The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said the government
paid
private Medicare plans, on average, 12 percent more than it would have cost
to care for the same people in traditional
Medicare. Moreover, it said,
payments to the fastest-growing type of plan, known as private
fee-for-service plans, are
19 percent higher than the cost of traditional
Medicare. The bill would gradually reduce these payments so that Medicare
would
pay the same amount, regardless of whether a beneficiary was in a
private plan or in traditional Medicare;
* The
bill would prohibit private Medicare plans from charging higher
co-payments than traditional Medicare;
* The Secretary
of Health and Human Services would be authorized to expand
Medicare coverage of preventive services such as certain disease-detection
screenings.
To encourage use of these benefits, the bill would eliminate
most co-payments and other charges.
While there are
a number of other provisions in the bill that would
strengthen Medicare, those listed above should provide a sufficient
incentive
for you to urge your U.S. Representative to support the CHAMP Act.
A sample letter is available for you to send to your
Congressman or
Congresswoman. Please go to the NRLN website at http://capwiz.com/abtr/home
<http://capwiz.com/abtr/utr/1/LPJDHLVFAZ/FDDNHLVLYX/1324237941> and look
for the Action Alert with the headline URGE YOUR U.S. REPRESENTATIVE TO
SUPPORT CHILDREN'S HEALTH
AND MEDICARE PROTECTION ACT. After you click on
"Take Action" you will see a box to type in your zip code. The
Representative
to receive your letter will be identified based on your zip
code.
If you have a problem accessing the Action Alert,
through the link above, go
to the NRLN Website Home Page at http://www.nrln.org
<http://capwiz.com/abtr/utr/1/LPJDHLVFAZ/EMHTHLVLYY/1324237941> . In the
"Take Action Now" paragraph near the top of the NRLN Home Page, click on the
"Click Here" link to take
you to the Action Alert.
Please take this opportunity to encourage your elected representative to
support H.R.
3162. Invite your family members and friends to also ask their
Representative to support the bill.
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