On Thursday, Feb. 26--the same day the president's budget was presented to Congress--several hundred SEIU members from around the Los Angeles area rallied to support the president's vision to fix healthcare. The workers gathered outside SEIU UHW-W's Commerce office and were joined by congressional candidate Judy Chu.

"We need to be united to protect our contract at Kaiser and win healthcare for all in this country," said UHW member Nancy Stengel, Kaiser-Irvine MOB (pictured on left).

(Pictured here on right) Dory Machica and Dolly Lee, SEIU UHW members and healthcare workers at Kaiser, are embraced by CA state Board of Equalization chair and candidate for Congress for the state's 32nd District Judy Chu.

Chu appeared with SEIU members from across California at the rally at the UHW headquarters in Los Angeles, which is in the 32nd District, where she is running to succeed new Labor Secretary Hilda Solis. "It's so wonderful to see us united here today," Chu told the crowd of 350. "Together, alongside President Obama, we are a powerful force to win healthcare for all in America."

Today, I heard the incoming Secretary of Health and Human Services talk
about "word clouds" in a major policy speech. I saw the next presidential
administration organizing online discussions and house parties instead of
lobbyist luncheons and corporate fundraisers to draft its agenda.

History is being written right now - and we're a part of it.

Senator Tom Daschle's speech in Denver this morning signals a major shift in
the role citizens will play in charting a course for America. The Obama
administration is rethinking the way government interacts with the people -
and they're challenging us to do the same.

All of us in the labor movement - and you in the netroots community - have
been dreaming of a moment like this for years. It's here. We cannot let one
minute pass us by.

While we engage in thoughtful and important debates online, 47 million
Americans are without health care. Millions more have coverage, but will
find out how inadequate it is when they need catastrophic care and their
insurance denies the claim. They are literally one illness away from
financial ruin.

SEIU stands ready to be a leading partner with President-elect Obama and
Senator Daschle in this fight. We are ready to commit our staff and
resources to fixing health care. And, more importantly, we have more than 2
million members ready to work for change.

We won't win this alone, though. That's why we're reaching out to anyone -
any group, any business, any member of Congress - that shares our commitment
to fixing health care. Some of our partners don't see eye-to-eye with us on
almost any issue - but on the issue of health care we're proud to hold
common ground.

We'll work together; but we won't compromise on finding a real solution that
meets our core principles. And we will not wait. For workers, businesses,
and the entire economy, the cost of doing nothing is too great.

The gate has been busted wide open. Now begins the work of creating change
that works for all Americans.

If we're going to fix our economy, we must fix America's broken healthcare system - we cannot afford to wait. Crushing healthcare costs have made it impossible to strengthen our economy, with families and businesses all struggling to make ends meet. Reforming healthcare means: keeping the healthcare you have, if you like it, seeing the doctor of your choice, increasing the quality of care while decreasing costs and eliminating waste, helping small businesses stay competitive, and reforming the insurance market so you will never face losing your coverage. Now is the time, to guarantee everyone access to quality, affordable healthcare.

AFFORDABILITY

Every man, woman and child in America must be guaranteed access to quality affordable coverage that will cover what they need to keep them healthy, provide adequate coverage for when they need it, and protect them from skyrocketing costs.

· The average family of four is paying $29,000 a year for healthcare in taxes, lower wages, and out-of-pocket medical expenses.

· In 2004, half of all people filing for bankruptcy cited medical costs as a reason. And in 2008, half of all home foreclosures were due in part to the high cost of coverage and care.

· The U.S. economy lost as much as $207 billion in 2007 as a result of the poor health and shorter lifespans of the uninsured.

Quality Affordable Coverage for All

◊ Benefits should be the same as the coverage that Members of Congress receive, with a guaranteed level of benefits.

◊ Require guarantee issue of all health plans, adjusted community rating of premiums and other insurance market reforms that provide access to all Americans without regard to health status or claims history.

◊ Provide sufficient subsidies for low and moderate income individuals and families.

◊ Limit the amount of out-of-pocket expenses, including deductibles and co-payments.

◊ People in the country legally, who work hard and play by the rules, deserve affordable coverage and access to public programs, as they do with children's health insurance program (SCHIP), and subsidies.

◊ Increase support for community-based health services and prevention by expanding the current system of community health centers, supporting safety net hospitals, and local public health efforts.

EMPLOYER RESPONSIBILITY

Business, government, and individuals must come together and share responsibility in solving America's healthcare crisis. Building on the employer based system will help people keep the healthcare if they like it.

· One in five American workers are currently uninsured, having increased by about 6 million in ten years.

· Employers who choose not to provide coverage for their employees are putting responsible businesses at a competitive disadvantage and increasing costs for everyone.

· American small businesses have seen their health care costs grow by 30% since 2000. Seventy-three percent of small business owners are willing to contribute towards guaranteeing quality, affordable health coverage for their employees.

Everyone Must Share Responsibility

◊ Employers should offer and contribute to meaningful coverage for their employees or pay into a fund.

◊ Small businesses should be guaranteed protections to help control costs and keep them competitive. Small businesses should receive tax credits, and the smallest businesses should be exempted.

PUBLIC HEALTH INSURANCE OPTION

The option of a public health insurance plan is necessary to ensure appropriate and adequate coverage, to foster choice and competition, to bring down costs, and to assure consumers have a stable marketplace where they can find quality, affordable coverage.

· Every day, fourteen thousand more Americans lose their insurance coverage during this economic crisis - left on their own in the private market.

· In 2008, one in six U.S. metro areas were dominated by one health insurer and controlled 70 percent of HMO/PPO enrollees, severely limiting consumer choice.

· Between 1997 and 2006, per enrollee spending in private insurance grew 59% faster than spending in Medicare.

Increase Choice and Competition

◊ A public health insurance option coupled with a more structured and robust private insurance market will prevent a handful of companies from controlling the insurance market and help drive costs down.

◊ A public health insurance plan will promote efficiency and innovation within the market, achieve lower growth through fair competition, and force private insurers in the marketplace to promote efficiencies and innovations as well - all helping to lower costs.

◊ A public health insurance option would help alleviate the burden on small businesses that is forcing them to choose between cutting health benefits and laying off employees.

Developing a better system to provide long-term care and care for chronic conditions will lower costs, improve quality of care and life, and help people stay in their homes and communities.

· In 2005, ten percent of Medicare beneficiaries accounted for nearly two-thirds of Medicare spending.

· Medicare spent $17.4 billion in 2004 on unnecessary or potentially preventable hospital readmissions. In fact, over 19 percent of the Medicare beneficiaries discharged from the hospital re-enter the hospital within 30 days.

· All Americans should have the choice to get needed care at home - 89 percent of Americans 50+ want to remain home as long as possible.

Improve Care for Chronically Ill

◊ Chronic care must be included in reform to promote more home and community based options under Medicare and Medicaid.

◊ Reforms should include more coordinated care, especially for the most chronically ill, especially those who are both Medicare and Medicaid patients.

HEALTHCARE WORKFORCE INVESTMENT

Reforming America's broken healthcare system requires training and upgrading the healthcare workforce. Our new healthcare system must expand its reach and capacity in order to deliver cost-effective, preventive and primary care to our rapidly aging population, uninsured, and underinsured Americans who currently go without adequate healthcare.

· There are more than 116,000 unfilled nursing jobs in America's hospitals and more than 25,000 unfilled nursing jobs in our nation's nursing homes.

· To keep pace with projected demand, our healthcare system will grow by nearly three million workers by 2016.

· Overall, the number of Americans who need long-term care and services will increase from approximately 10 million today to 15 million in 2020 to 27 million in 2050.

Invest in Jobs

◊ A significant federal investment in appropriate training and education of the non-physician workforce is needed.

◊ Training in new technologies, teams, and systems must be provided to both incumbent healthcare workers and new recruits.

◊ Support should be provided to recruit and train a workforce that reflects the diversity of the communities it serves.

Today (10:00 am EST), SEIU President Andy Stern will be testifying at a congressional hearing before the Senate Committee on Finance on health care and the economy. He'll be using the comments submitted by members and activists to show Congress how deeply the combined impact of the health care and economic crisis is affecting people all across the country and call for comprehensive health care reform.

After the hearing, join Andy for a live conversation at SEIU.org. He'll be reporting back about his testimony to Congress and where we're at in the movement to fix health care.

UPDATE: Check back at 2:30pm (EST) today for a live video conference with Andy Stern.

UPDATE #2: You can join the live conversation with Andy Stern on video conference now by clicking here. Watch the video conference here.

"We have a president who has promised to prioritize health care and improve the lives of workers. We have a Congress that has committed to providing economic relief for families--including affordable health insurance," writes SEIU Healthcare chair Dennis Rivera, in The Hill's Congress Blog.

"The 46 million Americans without health insurance--many of whom are just one illness away from financial disaster--cannot wait any longer. That's why the two million working families of SEIU have begun gearing up for an unprecedented campaign to win health care for all."

SEIU issued a statement in support of the diagnosis of and prescription for mending our broken health care system released today by Senator Max Baucus (D-MT), the chairman of the Finance Committee:

On the heels of a historic election where voters ranked health care among their top overall issues--and health care costs as their number one economic concern--Senator Max Baucus's thoughtful and comprehensive approach to address the nation's broken health care system is a significant contribution to the growing discussion around solutions to the crisis.

The progressive 35,000-word "Call to Action" proposed by Senator Baucus would guarantee health insurance for all Americans by encouraging sales of private insurance, expand Medicaid and Medicare, and requiring most employers to provide healthcare benefits for their employees.

Read SEIU's complete statement in support of Sen. Baucus's new blueprint to solve our nation's health care crisis.

Full PDF text of blueprint here.