NNU, nation’s largest union of registered nurses, testifies in support of Medicare for All

National Nurses United (NNU) President Jamie Brown, RN, will testify at the Congressional Progressive Caucus’ (CPC) shadow hearing, “Universal Healthcare: Now is the Time for Medicare for All,” on Wednesday, July 22. NNU is the largest union of registered nurses, who see everyday how people cannot access or afford the health care they need when they need it.

“As bedside nurses, we see every day how Americans are suffering needlessly from a for-profit health care system,” said Jamie Brown, RN and NNU president. “The failure to pass visionary policies that center care and health for working people, in order to to favor billionaire and corporate profit, is a stain on our country’s morality. Elected officials can do what is both necessary and popular and deliver to their constituents a guaranteed health care system with Medicare for All.” 

After the hearing, Brown will be joined by union nurses and Medicare for All supporters for lobby meetings with members of Congress. Press can register here to attend.

Who: NNU president Jamie Brown, RN; Medicare for All supporters, Physicians for a National Health Plan; Public Citizen; People’s Action Institute; and members and staff of the Congressional Progressive Caucus
What: Congressional Progressive Caucus shadow hearing: “Universal Healthcare: Now is the Time for Medicare for All”
When: Wednesday, July 22, 8:30-10 a.m.
Where: Capitol Visitor Center, 217 (South Congressional Meeting Room)

The CPC’s shadow hearing provides a necessary antidote to D.C. insiders urging lawmakers to prioritize small tweaks to our current system and will offer a more ambitious vision. As health care costs soar, affordability is top of mind for U.S. families, and it's a particularly important kitchen-table issue ahead of the 2026 midterms.

Medicare for All is overwhelmingly popular, with a commanding majority supporting the policy nationwide: 63 percent of all voters and 90 percent of Democratic voters. In June, NNU released a sign-on letter in support of Medicare for All that included more than 335 local, state, and national labor unions and organizations. 

In Congress, more than half of the House Democratic Caucus now supports Medicare for All, and Senate legislation has added three cosponsors since the last Congress.

National Nurses United is the largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the United States with more than 225,000 members nationwide. NNU affiliates include California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee, DC Nurses Association, Michigan Nurses Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, and New York State Nurses Association.