The People's Rally, in DC, at Malcolm X Park, for Single Payer (Part 2 of 3)

Part 2 of 3. Great stories and inspiration to keep up the fight for health care reform.

The People's Rally, in DC, at Malcolm X Park, for Single Payer (Part 3 of 3)

Great video and new diagnosis introduced that I believe clearly defines the current issue very well.

BILL MOYERS JOURNAL | Preview: Wendell Potter pt 2 | PBS

Part 2

BILL MOYERS JOURNAL | Preview: Wendell Potter pt. 1 | PBS

A must see that exposes the truth from the head of public relations at Cigna on how the insurance industry manipulates and cheat the public.

Part 1 of 2

LET YOUR VOICE BE HEARD

I attended a rally for health care reform today in Nashville outside the offices of Senator Corker and Alexander. Nearly 300 people attended to send the message that we want affordable, quality health care for all Americans now.

You can get your voice heard and help the cause by calling your congressman now at 1-866-288-1495. You will be ask for your zip code and then you will be connected to your representative’s office. Once connected let them know that you support quality, affordable health care for all Americans and hope that they will support HR 3200.

HBO's Bill Maher Takes On President Obama

I love this and feel like it captures my feelings. I hope that as Bill Maher states that we begin to see more action and less hope. I want to see real health care reform, investigation and prosecution of the Bush administration and those that violated our consitition, the punishment of those that destroyed our economy and put millions out of work, the end (now) of the war in Iraq and for that matter Afganistan. We have a limmited time to get these things done and its time we get off the pot. We don't need conservative friends we need and elected Obama and the rest of the democrats for results.

You go Bill, thanks for telling like it is.

Converts and Activist

With the health care reform debate at full steam and everyone weighing in, I am growing suspect of some of the recent converts. Recently the hospital association that represents the interest of many if not most of America’s hospitals stated they would contribute to the upcoming reform to help it get off the ground.
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/health/july-dec09/hospitals_07-08.html

This gives me a very uneasy feeling, something like no interest loans with no income verification did. I wonder other than the obvious what their motivation is. I hope that they are sincere but I believe this is just their way of buying a better seat at the table in their hope to influence the reform in a way that lessons the impact on their profit margins. I hope that I am wrong but am doubtful that their motives are really in the best interest of patients and the communities they serve.

You have to be concerned when companies like HCA, WalMart and other mega marts of goods and services get into the social activism arena. They are true capitalist, I mean exploiters, and like Walmart sales cheap goods made on the backs of the poor in china with no regards to the quality of life of the worker and denies its employees in our nation a living wage, HCA makes its money on the cutting of corners in patient care to save and make another buck. They deny their employees the right to organize and have in the recent past been part of the largest ever Medicare and Medicaid fraud case.

Be suspicious Be very suspicious.

Congressman Cooper Support Public Option

We need to hold him to this position. He has stated to me in person and in email that he supports health care access for all and a viable public option. He states this here and we need to make sure that it happens. Write your representative and demand that they support a public option and real health care reform.

Speaking the truth in DC

This last Wednesday and Thursday I had the privilege of spending time with fellow activist of the SEIU, advocating for meaningful health care reform. I had worked all night the night before and caught the plane that morning at 0930 am. Arrived in DC around noon having not slept in nearly 30 hours at that point. If is wasn't for the fact that I so passionately believe in the need for health care reform I am sure I would have not been able to find the energy that I did.

I am a registered nurse of eleven years and have come to believe that the health care system as it currently exist is broken. I have been an activist on this issue for the better part of the last two years and feel that as a nurse it is my duty to fix the system. We must have a system that provides access for all, quality care for all and at a reasonable price for all and free to those that otherwise cannot afford it. It is time that a nation as rich as ours steps up and gives all its citizens the opportunity to achieve the American dream. Without your health it is not possible to pursue life, liberty and happiness.

While in DC I met with my representative Congressman Cooper, he stated that he is in full support of Obama and the plan for real health care reform to include the public option. I will hold him to his word!

I also spoke with chief of staff to Senator Alexander and and a staffer of Senator Corker and found them open to the discussion of health care reform. Their positions are different from that of my Congressman but their is room for some common ground.

I told the stories of patients and friends who have been crushed by the burden of health care cost. I also tried to show how vulnerable the middle class is to financial devastation when a health care crisis develops in their lives. I shared the stories of a friend of mine who had a traumatic brain injury and is now facing bills that are leading his family to financial ruins and how his health coverage and prescription cost are so expensive that he may loose everything he has worked for his entire life. His family will suffer all because our health care system is broken.

I was also a witness and participant in a very spirited rally that featured members of the senate and congress that gave their words we would see real reform on health care this year. We should hold them all to that!

We can't miss this opportunity as citizens to get involved in shaping the health care reform debate. I am optimistic that a plan that includes choice, access and coverage for all will come out of the house and am hopeful that the senate can achieve the same.

I hope as a registered nurse to see the future of health care improved so that patients are treated as people and not commodities. We as a nation have the opportunity to say that we value life not only in the womb but through out the span of ones life. We can do this and should do this now as it is long over due.

Michael Chapman, RN
Old Hickory, TN

Patients Before Profits: RNs Take on HCA

The title says it all.

Tennessee's Healthcare Workers Speak Out!

Sara Steffens of Contra Costa Times Speaks Up for Employee Free Choice Act

How many testimonials does a person have to hear before they believe that there is a problem. The corporations have millions, they have high priced attorneys and PR firms to spin their lies and hide their intimidation tactics but the people like Sara Steffens have no reason to lie and they speak from their heart. We need to awaken and demand our rights in the work place and stop the abuse of our right to organize if we choose.

The vote for workers rights; Employee Free Choice Act

The Employee Free Choice Act is now in Congress and being debated. I have been watching the news and reading the blogs to get a sense of what people are thinking, hearing and feeling as the debate unfolds. So far I have heard many truths but just as many lies and I feel I need to put my two cents worth out there.

Business would have you believe that they are the defenders of the democracy and the protector of the secret ballot. They are claiming first of all that EFCA would strip employees of their right to secret ballot which is false. The legislation states that the workers would have the right to decide on using signed cards alone or having a secret ballot election. The decision would no longer be in the hands of the employer.

They also are making the claim that due to the financial problems our nation is facing that this is just a bad idea and will hurt business and their ability to expand and provide new jobs. This is garbage they don't provide jobs because they are interested in the well being of a community or the American people. They provide jobs because there is money to be made. Employee and employer is a relationship that is not about friendship or family but about a mutual need for income. It is a business relationship and for to long it has been one sided with all the growth going to the business. As the economy rebounds the jobs will return and the profits will come back and I believe that it is time we as the producers of that income begin to get our fair and just share of prosperity.

EFCA is a step towards correcting the imbalance that exist in the relationship between worker and employer. I hope that you will read the legislation and keep in mind that if the employees at any given business do not want a union then they won't have one but if they do desire to organize then they should be able to due it without threats of firing or intimidation from their employer.

If they treat their employees well, pay a fair and just living wage and provide the benefits that they enjoy then they will have nothing to fear.

Visit http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c111:S.560: to view the Senate bill and http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?c111:2:./temp/~c111IPg9ar:: to view the house bill.

AFL-CIO Employee Free Choice Act NOW

This video says it all.

Safe limits on Nurses Overtime

I am seeking legislation in the state of Tennessee to limit voluntary overtime and make mandatory overtime illegal except in circumstances of declared emergency. I appreciate an input you would like to offer.

The studies are conclusive that nurses who work greater than 12 hour shifts or do not have at least a 10-12 hour break for rest between shifts are three times more likely to commit an error that reaches a patient. The studies have also agreed that the hours a nurse works in a week should generaly be no more than 60 and that should be rare.

As a nurse I and every nurse I know want to avoid errors and provide safe care for our patients. Nurses are frequently pressured to work overtime through large monetary incentives, pressure from managment to be " a team player", the fact that you do or do not take overtime has even been part of some evaluations I have had in the past. With this said, nurses often agree to overtime when they otherwise might not. Most do not however see the potential risk to their license or the patient in their care that they are taking.

Just like the limits for truckers on how long they may drive and pilots on how long they may fly, we need legislation that puts some safe and sound limits on how long we as nurses may work.

Sen. Durbin at the Employee Free Choice Act Rally

Listen to what is said. It is not unions that are or have destroyed America and its ability to compete. It is the corporate greed and bloated paychecks and bonuses of the CEO's that have and are currently damaging our system.

We must pass the Employee Free Choice Act and restore fairness to the work place and ensure that the right to organize is protected. The corporate abuse must stop and this legislation will go along way to achieve fairness in the work place. Don't believe the hype on fox news or the antiunion campaigns by corporate big wigs who stand to lose if the workers are able to get the contracts that ensure a fair and living wage.

Born Again American

A great message to all Americans to get involved. I am not a religious in any way but agree with the moral message of this song and encourage all those moved by its message to get involved.

HCA: Profit and Greed on the backs of their workforce.

This is a bulletin I recently received from the CNA showing how HCA is once again stiffing the worker while lining their own pockets and getting richer off the backs of their dedicated workforce. It is very enlightening but not surprising.

HCA Execs Getting Wealthier
Many HCA RNs are reeling from the loss of retirement security resulting from the company’s decision to eliminate their pension and transfer their earnings to a 401(k) which has seen losses of up to 40%. For some this means putting off their retirement – for others it spells financial doom. Some HCA hospitals are laying off ancillary workers, trimming the hours of part-timers and reducing use of more-expensive temporary nurses hired through agencies. Recently we told you that, in Tennessee, HCA is cutting 110 jobs and closing most functions at its Portland hospital, laying off roughly 100 headquarters staffers, and at Centennial Hospital eliminating RN raises, the night shift differential and decreasing RN holiday pay.
So what are the top administrators of HCA doing to shoulder their share of the burden? HCA tells us these cuts –and the ones to come – are absolutely necessary. But a simple review of HCA’s SEC filings reveals that a number of recent, large transactions have boosted the networth of a cadre of upper echelon HCA executives.
Leading off the movement to exercise stock options was:
Joseph N Steakley, Senior VP of Internal Audit Services who cashed in some stock options this week, walking away with $170,088 in cash. He still holds 17,027 more shares so expect to see him add a healthy chunck of change to his net worth soon.
Western Group President Samuel Hazen last month gave up 14,151 shares leaving him with a paper gain of $432,000.
Next up the line was Senior Vice President Vic Campbell who excercised 55,215 shares generating more than $800,000.
CFO Milton Johnson excercised his option to buy 87,180 shares. His net worth gain: $1.4 million.
And truly leading the pack was General Counsel Robert Waterman who acquired 1.78 million worth of shares for a paper profit of $2.2 million.
All told the group boosted its networth by roughly 4.9 million dollars.
Anyone still buying the line that we all need to sacrifice during these tough economic times? It’s very clear that those of us who are paying the price are doing so to the benefit of others.

Read the full story. This link will take you to the Nashville news paper article where the information above was sourced from.

Why union check cards are the answer.

The article below is taken from the National Workrights Institute website at http://www.workrights.org/issue_organize.html. The article is the best arguement that I have read for changing the current election system to that of union check cards. Please read and post your comments and concerns.


REPRESENTATION ELECTIONS UNDER THE NLRACAN THE SYSTEM BE FIXED?
It has been well known for years that the union representation election process under the National Labor Relations Act is seriously flawed and fails to reflect the desires of a majority of workers. Many scholars and activists have made proposals for reforming the NLRA election system. Others believe that the system is inherently unworkable and cannot be fixed. These individuals believe that the solution is to eliminate elections and substitute the card check system.
The first step in resolving this crucial issue is recognizing that it cannot be answered in the abstract. The controlling principle is that the decision regarding whether or not a group of workers is represented by a union is that the decision should represent the will of the majority. Whether to hold elections or use card check is not a matter of principle, but a pragmatic issue. The method used to make this decision (card check or election) should be the method which best implements the wishes of the workers.
The most serious problem with the current election system is that one side has a near monopoly of access to the voters (workers). The employer can hold unlimited meetings to put forth its arguments against the union. The union is not allowed to speak at these meetings. Neither are workers who support the union. Nor are workers allowed to stay away. Under the Act, employers are permitted to make attending these anti-union meetings a condition of employment. The union, in contrast, is not even allowed into the facility to talk to the workers.
Clearly, this is unfair. The results of a political election would never be recognized as legitimate under these circumstances. If an election based system is to be maintained, the problem of unequal access must be solved.
The captive audience problem can be solved. The NLRA could be amended to require that the union be given equal time, either at the same meeting at which the employer makes its presentation, or at a separate meeting. The rules could be changed so that the conditions of attendance (voluntary or mandatory) were the same for both. Employers would vigorously oppose such a change in the law, and it would be difficult to accomplish politically, but there is no principled reason why this change cannot be made.
This alone, however, does not solve the equal access problem. Employers do not confine their communication to formal meetings. During an organizing campaign, management communicates its message constantly. Even the most casual conversation between management and workers frequently contains a statement or question regarding the upcoming election. For the election process to be fair, the union would have to be given the opportunity for the same type of communication. This would mean giving representatives of the union unrestricted and unsupervised access to the workplace. Such a system, however, is completely unworkable. Having outsiders wandering around the facility talking to anyone they want to whenever they want would completely disrupt production. It could even be a safety hazard. Imagine outsiders, who do not know the facility, walking around a steel mill or refinery without supervision.
This represents a fatal defect in the election model. The election is not fair unless both sides have comparable access to the voters. But giving the union such access is impossible.
The other critical problem with elections is employer coercion. Literally thousands of workers are fired every year for trying to organize. This not only denies the rights of these workers, but intimidates other workers as well. Firing a handful of workers is often enough to stop an organizing campaign in its tracks. A solution to this problem must be found if the election model is to be retained.
On paper, the problem can be solved. Any behavior which is motivated by a rational expectation of gain can be deterred if the penalty is sufficiently severe and the probability of being caught is high enough. In practice, however, it may be insoluble. The economic gains to an employer by keeping its workforce non-union are substantial. Unionized workers make at least 20% more than non-union workers in comparable jobs. A large employer can save literally millions of dollars by violating the NLRA. In addition, employers have deep personal resistance to sharing power with workers. The penalty required to overcome the combined resistance of these two factors would be huge, possibly large enough to threaten the financial health of the company (and the continued existence of the workers’ jobs). Criminal penalties against offending managers would have adequate deterrent effect, but it is questionable at best that our country is prepared to take this step.
The severity of both these problems would be greatly reduced under card check. Under card check, the decision-making period would no longer be approximately seven weeks. Instead, it would be months, or even years. With essentially unlimited time to get its message across, the union’s inferior access to the workers would be far less of a problem.
An unlimited decision making period would also diminish the impact of coercion. The time and effort required of management to keep the pressure on during an organizing drive is substantial. As a practical matter, an employer simply cannot keep holding frequent captive audience meetings forever, nor can it turn every discussion with a worker into an anti-union sales pitch forever. Over time, the focus must return to producing and selling the product.
It is often claimed that card check is a one sided process in which the union “sells” workers on organizing while the employer, unaware of the campaign, is silent. Nothing could be further from the truth. Nothing in the card check system prevents an employer from explaining its views about unions to workers as part of its regular employee communications program. Sophisticated employers do this already.
Moreover, an employer will still be able to amplify their message during an organizing campaign under card check. In virtually every company, there are some employees who are opposed to joining a union. When these employees become aware that a union is collecting cards, they will tell management. This will allow management to step up their communications during critical periods.
Even under card check, the employer continues to have the upper hand. It has easy access to the workers daily, while the union has to struggle to locate workers away from the facility. Even with a list of the workers’ home addresses (which the employer is required to provide under the Excelsior decision), communicating with workers away from the company is difficult and inefficient.
The employer also continues to have far more ability to coerce those it has not persuaded. In the absence of a union, workers are employees at will. They can be fired for any reason, fair or unfair, or for no reason at all. The employer also controls promotions, pay raises, vacation scheduling and many other decisions that seriously affect a worker and his or her family. Even if gross retaliation (such as firing the leaders of an organizing effort) can be effectively prevented, an employer retains the ability to do great harm to a worker whom it views as a negative influence. This power vastly surpasses any ability employees favoring the union may have to arm twist a few “voters” in a closely divided company.
Overall, card check is a better method to determine whether workers will be represented by a union. The employer has unfair advantages under the election model that cannot be eliminated. Under card check, however, the effect of these advantages is greatly reduced so that the ultimate decision more often reflects the desire of the workers.

Hope for the future of our healthcare system.

Hope and Reform


There is finally real potential for health care reform. With the election of Barack Obama and now his appointment of former Senator Tom Daschle to head Health and Human Services and today’s announcement of Hilda Solis to head the Labor Dept, real reform may be on the way. I say may because I have been let down by politicians before but these three have all expressed a need for change for a long time and I have real hope for the first time that positive reform will happen.

Tom Daschle wrote a book a couple of years ago titled “Critical- what we can do about healthcare”, this book offers real solutions to many of the problems that make our current healthcare system inefficient and unfair to those under and uninsured in our country. The following link will take you to a description of the book and reviews by other prominent politicians and public officials. http://zedc3test.techprogress.org/issues/2008/02/critical.html

Hilda Solis named today as the nominee to head the US Labor Dept is a victory for workers, labor and the healthcare system. She is a strong advocate for organized labor and will be very effective in giving strength to the right to organize and pursue a voice for change and justice in the work place.
See her bio at the following links : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hilda_Solis , http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/1208/121808cdpm1.htm?rss=getoday .

I believe that strong healthcare workers and specifically nurses that have protection of unions will be able to advocate for their patients safety. The current system and the weakness of the NLRB (National Labor relations board), allows for hospital corporations both private, public, for profit and not for profit to silence their nurses and providers from speaking out about unsafe staffing, unsafe practices and policies or lack of concern for issues related to safety. In today’s system if you blow the whistle or demand that safety issues are addressed you are labeled a troublemaker and terminated or forced out. A strong, pro employee labor dept and a health secretary interested in reform will strengthen the protections afforded healthcare workers and in my opinion make the system safer for us all.

Unions are not all about the wages and benefits. Like in California and Massachusetts, unions have pushed for real legislative reform and have succeeded in making their systems better. I am not implying that they are without flaw in those states but they through the pressures of the unions and their nurse members have achieved real legislative reforms, like staffing ratios, limits on work hours and mandatory overtime. These issues have been proven to have a real influence on outcomes and the safety of patients in the acute care system.

We have a long way to go but I am very optimistic that the team that will assume power on January 20th will serve the American people well and finally put our healthcare and labor system back on the right track to fairness, justice and safety.