Leaders of two labor unions wrote and published a letter outlining their concerns with the Affordable Care Act aka Obamacare this week. The two unions, Laborer’s International Union of North America and Unite Here, sent the letter to the two Democratic leaders in the House and Senate, Rep. Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Harry Reid respectively, on January 27.
The angry letter slams the Democrats for failing to address concerns about Obamacare that the two unions have brought up over the course of three years. The letter says that Obamacare “undermines fair marketplace competition in the health care industry.” It says that Obamacare introduces unfair subsidies, and notes that the law creates “overwhelming” temptation to drop existing health care plans and coverage.
The unions also accuse Obamacare of creating “unbalanced competition” that will allow some employers to act irresponsibly and dump their workers onto Obamacare’s exchanges, making it harder for more responsible companies to compete. The unions believe that Obamacare will make income inequality worse, not better.
In the letter, LiUNA and Unite Here note their “bitter disappointment” that despite trying to work with the Obama administration for three years, their concerns about Obamacare were never heeded. The Obama was “not listening or simply did not care,” the unions say in the letter. The letter ends noting that “It would be a sad irony indeed if the signature legislative accomplishment of an Administration committed to reducing income inequality cut living standards for middle income and low income workers.”
The full letter is posted here. The unions represent about one million workers and their families.
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