We asked AFT members: “what kind of healthcare reform would you like to see in the United States?” Here’s what they had to say:

“I would like to see some sort of involvement on the part of the employer, either mandating some basic level of insurance or paying into a fund for the uninsured.”
—Oregon

“Healthcare today has become a mega-industry and we as a society are not prepared to financially support it. We are rapidly approaching a crisis and there needs to be a plan to reform the current healthcare system. A form of single payer, whether you call it ‘Medicare for all’ or national health insurance, would help to reduce the cost of healthcare. The multiple levels of management in insurance offices, hospitals, managed care planners are a significant part of the problem. They are not inexpensive people.” 
—New York

“Expand Medicare to cover everyone even if it means higher taxes. Many are paying out of pocket for coverage. I feel private insurance companies are for-profit, which raises premiums. Have employers pay toward the cost to keep the taxes lower. Something needs to be done and I’m glad we are taking action.”
—New York

“We should cap administrative salaries, lower the profits of insurance companies, stop frivolous lawsuits, cap drug companies’ profits, lower physicians malpractice insurance, cap lawyers fees for malpractice suits, and stop unnecessary hospital admissions.”
—New Jersey

“On a national level, we need to rope in the pharmaceutical companies’ and the insurance companies’ power. Hopefully, a new democratic executive branch will do that.”
—Wisconsin

“It is time to separate healthcare coverage from employment, but the tax burden should be on employers as well as individual taxpayers. I keep reading that the increased tax burden would still be significantly less per year than each of our current costs for coverage and copays—and that sounds good to me!”
—Vermont

“Require companies to offer insurance or pay into a fund to cover the uninsured. It is disgraceful ... that our country, the superpower of the world, would allow mega-corporations, such as Wal-mart, to deny this fundamental human right to any American citizen. Any country’s power should be measured in terms of its treatment for the poor!”
—Wisconsin

What do you think?
Write us with your comments at afthealthcarefeedback@aft.org. We will post your comments on this page.