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It is no secret that there is an attack on our public health insurances and public health systems by the profiteers who want the public dollars for themselves. The Veteran's Health Administration is worth almost $200 billion a year and private health industries are eager to get a piece of that.
Privatization is dangerous for two major reasons:
1. Privatization of the VA would begin to dismantle the system that provides comprehensive and specialized care to veterans, placing their health at risk.
2. Privatization of the VA is
being justified by a false argument that says the government can't provide high-quality care. In fact, the VA
provides high quality care for much less than the private sector.
We, as supporters of single payer healthcare, such as National Improved Medicare for All (NIMA), must defend our single payer health systems.
We need to act quickly because the House of Representatives voted last week to pass a bill, the
VA Mission Act of 2018, that would shunt veterans into private clinics, close VA hospitals and place excessive burdens on the VA without providing more resources.
The bill is expected to be voted on by the Senate on Wednesday, so we need to act now!
Call your senators at
833-480-1637 and tell them you strongly oppose the VA MISSION Act (S. 2372).
Workers on the frontlines of the VA have proposed changes that would protect the future of the VA health care system - including keeping essential primary care services within the VA. Yet none of these changes were made in Congress. Every dollar spent on privatized care deprives our veterans of the specialized care offered in our VAs - specialized care that saves their lives and helps veterans heal faster.
Please call 833-480-1637 and feel free to use the script below. Make the call twice, once to each of your Senators. Do this now: the future of OUR Veterans Administration is at stake.
My name is [Insert your name - and please let them know if you are a Veteran!], I live in [YOUR CITY AND STATE]. I’m calling today to ask you to vote NO on S. 2372 , the VA Mission Act. Every dollar spent on privatized care deprives our veterans of the specialized care we offer in our VA - specialized care that saves their lives and helps veterans heal more effectively. This bill will also create a BRAC commission leading to the closure of some VA facilities.
Please end by asking your Senator to vote NO on the VA Mission Act (S. 2372) when it comes to the Senate floor. Once you hang up, please call 833-480-1637 again to speak with your other Senator’s office.
More details about the VA MISSION Act (S. 2372):
- The legislation gives a VA Secretary the authority to privatize and dismantle broad swaths of the VA health care system;
- The legislation gives the next VA Secretary broad authority to dismantle the VA at a time when the VA faces intense political pressure to pursue privatization;
- The legislation will devastate communities with closures of vibrant VA medical centers;
- The legislation will lead to privatization at the expense of full-staffing and resources needed for VA’s in-house operations.
Our Senators need to hear from all of us!
Call now and let them know you oppose this disastrous bill. Call 833-480-1637 today!
Last Monday, author Suzanne Gordon and Ian Hoffman, political director of the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), spoke about the VA and the efforts to dismantle it on the HOPE National Call. You can listen to a recording of that call
here and you'll find more information, including sample letters that you can copy and paste to send to your senators,
here.
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