Campaign To Expand Health Insurance To All US Residents

The AFL-CIO onWednesday at events in several cities nationwide announced a campaignthat seeks to expand health insurance to all U.S. residents by the endof 2009, the Louisville Courier-Journal reports. The campaign seeks to help elect presidential and congressional candidates that support such proposals.

Accordingto the AFL-CIO, which did not endorse specific candidates or proposals,the U.S. health care system should reduce "rising and irrational"costs; provide comprehensive, high-quality care to all residents; andcontinue to allow residents to select their physicians (Howington,Louisville Courier-Journal, 8/30). AFL-CIO President JohnSweeney said that the union likely will not endorse a specificpresidential candidate during the primary season, although all theunions will hold all candidates accountable for their health carepositions. Under current rules, a candidate would have to obtainsupport from two-thirds of AFL-CIO members to receive an endorsementfrom the union (Swanson, The Hill, 8/29).
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