Tell the Super-Committee: "We need jobs, not cuts!"
These programs provide lifesaving care that millions of Americans rely on every day. The cuts would threaten the ability of hospitals, nursing homes and homecare providers to deliver quality care, and would also threaten millions of good jobs that can't be shipped overseas.
The healthcare sector has led the nation in hiring since the recession began, adding 900,000 jobs from December 2007 through June 2011, according to the Center for Sustainable Health Spending. New data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that so far in 2011, the healthcare sector has been responsible for nearly one in four new jobs in the overall economy.
In "Super-Committee" states California and Michigan alone, healthcare employs 2.1 million Americans (1,513,200 + 584,700). These are good jobs within communities that can help support small businesses, provide strong tax revenues for cities and towns, and that cannot be shipped overseas. Consequently, cuts will also have a detrimental impact on one of America's greatest job engines. For every $1 million in Medicaid reductions, there will be a loss of 17.1 jobs, according to Families USA.
With nearly 14 million Americans struggling to find work, Congress should not be considering cuts to the one sector of the economy that's creating jobs. We're not just a little over a week away from the November 23rd deadline for the Joint Committee on Deficit Reduction (i.e. the Super-Committee) to report out a deal. Please call your Representative by dialing 877-736-7831 and tell them to protect care and save jobs--not make cuts to Medicaid and Medicare.
More facts about healthcare jobs and the effect of healthcare cuts can be found here:
http://www.seiu.org/healthcare-jobs/.
