URGENT: Tell Sen. Voinovich to Help Unemployed Workers

Source: AFSCME Political Action Dept.

May 20, 2008 - The U.S. Senate is about to consider an important amendment to the war spending bill now on the floor (H.R. 2642). This critical amendment would extend federal unemployment benefits for 13 weeks and postpone seven controversial new Medicaid regulations.

Please call Sen. George Voinovich today—tell him to support the domestic spending amendment to H.R. 2642. The call is toll free:

1-866-338-5720

The proposed amendment to H.R. 2642 would provide 13 weeks of extended unemployment benefits for jobless workers in every state plus another 13 weeks of benefits for jobless workers in “high unemployment” states that have at least 6 percent unemployment.

More than 200,000 workers are exhausting their state unemployment benefits every month, and an estimated 3.5 million workers will exhaust their state benefits over the next year.

The long-term unemployment rate is already much higher than it was at the beginning of the 2001 and 1990-1991 recessions, and it is the same as when Congress extended benefits during the past two recessions.

In addition to helping workers who need help the most, economists agree that extending unemployment benefits is a proven way to stimulate the economy. Unemployed workers are likely to spend these benefits quickly to make ends meet, which quickly pumps money into the economy.

Mark Zandi of Economy.com has said: “If someone who is literally living paycheck to paycheck gets an extra dollar, it’s very likely that they will spend that dollar immediately on whatever they need—groceries, to pay the telephone bill, to pay the electric bill.”

The amendment also includes a temporary one-year moratorium on seven faulty Medicaid regulations. The combined effect of these regulations would be to reduce federal spending on Medicaid by $20 billion over 5 years by shifting costs to states and localities for critical services reimbursed through Medicaid. The substantial cost shift this would entail simply cannot be absorbed without impeding access to Medicaid and other state-funded services, including public health programs, education and transportation.

America’s workers are hurting, and Congress must take immediate action.

Please urge Sen. Voinovich to vote to extend unemployment benefits and postpone these controversial Medicaid regulations. Again the toll-free number is 1-866-338-5720.

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