WHEREAS, in a functioning, prosperous and humane society, everyone should have affordable health care; and

WHEREAS, although the current federal health care framework of the Affordable Care Act, combined with Medicare and Medicaid, has provided millions of people with access to health care and the ability to get their most basic health needs met, the federal law was never expected to cover all who are uninsured, and many of the 11 million who were uninsured in New York State prior to the Affordable Care Act still lack any health coverage; and

WHEREAS, the health insurance system as a whole in our state and the country remains highly fragmented, which itself adds to health costs through the cost of administration and paperwork; and

WHEREAS, instead of addressing these problems in any serious way, the Republican majority in the U.S. House of Representatives has chosen to exacerbate them with proposed legislation, the American Health Care Act, that would eliminate health care coverage for up to 24 million Americans, according to the Congressional Budget Office; and

WHEREAS, the United Federation of Teachers in 2015 supported the New York Health Act to establish single-payer universal health coverage in New York; therefore be it

RESOLVED, that the UFT opposes the American Health Care Act, as well as any attempts to reduce the health care access provided by Medicare, Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act; and be it further

RESOLVED, that the UFT calls for improving the health care safety net, including protecting and improving Medicare, Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act; and be it further

RESOLVED, that the UFT reaffirms that the most sensible and cost-effective solution for health coverage is a single-payer system modeled after the federal Medicare system; and be it further

RESOLVED, that the UFT will educate and mobilize its members and our broader community to support universal health care coverage.