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To the editor:
Two stories on the same page of the Feb. 21 Chief ("Daily News journalists vow to forge ahead despite contract fight" and "Homecare nurses demand contract, restored health coverage"), both touch on a much neglected issue. Both dealt with workers' health coverage.
Daily News' employees had to file an unfair labor practice charge to keep their employer, Alden Global Capital, from changing their health coverage without input from the union. An agreement was reached to give them coverage they found acceptable. But it only lasts through 2026.
Nurses employed by CenterLight are experiencing the irony of having their own health coverage terminated. This was after they turned down a proposal that would have quadrupled their health care costs.
In any other developed country, this would not be an issue. They consider health care a human right. After all, it's the difference between life and death.
Having such coverage provided through the government would no longer put your life at the mercy of your employer. It would also provide care for those who are unemployed.
Not only is implementation of such coverage impossible under the current leadership, but it was also blocked when Democrats were in power. Senator Bernie Sanders' Medicare-for-all proposal has never been seriously pushed by either major party.
Richard Warren
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