National Nurses Movement Lauds Al Gore for Leadership on Single-Payer ...( Gore's New Statement Is Clear: It...),Health

Gore's New Statement Is Clear: It's Time for Universal, Single-Payer

Healthcare

OAKLAND, Calif., Oct. 19 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee thanks Al Gore for his forceful new words in support of the kind of universal, non-profit, single-payer healthcare that this country desperately needs -- and that is succeeding in nearly every other industrialized democracy.

The statement reflects a growing national consensus that a national, non-profit insurance system would clearly out-perform the private insurance corporations that spend up to one-third of their overhead on overhead and profits... and that it is long past time to put an end to the nation's healthcare crisis.

On this issue, however, the public is far ahead of most of the political class. A March New York Times/CBS poll found that the vast majority of Americans want a total restructuring of the healthcare system, and preferred a single-payer system to the current private insurance system 47% to 38%. Unfortunately, many politicians continue to accept money from health insurance corporations, and push plans that mandate Americans to purchase expensive and inefficient private insurance products.

"Al Gore has long been a champion of the environment -- and now he's a champion of America's patients. There is only one solution to our healthcare crisis, and that is the kind of guaranteed, non-profit, single-payer health insurance that we know works," said Zenei Cortez, RN, a member of CNA/NNOC's Council of Presidents.

Called "Healthcare Is A Right," Gore released the following statement on his Current television channel (http://current.com/items/84987281_health_care_is_a_right):

I strongly support universal, single-payer, government-provided -- or,

government-funded -- healthcare. It doesn
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