Bill would tax billionaire wealth, invest in working class

National Nurses United’s statement on the Make Billionaires Pay Their Fair Share Act:

“National Nurses United (NNU), the largest union of registered nurses in the United States, is proud to endorse the Make Billionaires Pay Their Fair Share Act led by Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.) and Rep. Ro Khanna (Calif.). This legislation begins to right the wrongs of our corrupt tax code, which has allowed the rich and corporations to hoard exorbitant amounts of wealth while the working class, whose labor creates that wealth, is forced to decide between paying for housing and food or prescription medications and health insurance. 

“This extreme wealth inequality, with billionaires paying far less in taxes than the average worker, did not just happen overnight. Corporations and billionaires used their wealth over decades to undermine our government and advance their perverse agenda to erode democratic freedoms — health care, education, and public programs — that uplift the working class. Billionaires and corporations won their biggest victory last year with the passage of the Republican budget bill (H.R. 1), which was the largest transfer of wealth in our history. NNU strongly opposed H.R. 1, denouncing the gutting of Medicaid and other safety-net programs and holding rallies to protest against Medicaid cuts.

“Nurses see the fractures in our society as patients ration their care and make difficult decisions between food, rent, and health care, and pay that cost with their lives. Nurses know we can be a society that takes care of each other. This bill would allow us to begin doing so by:

• Expanding Medicare to include dental, vision, and hearing care for our seniors
• Reversing the over $1 trillion in cuts to Medicaid and health care programs in H.R.1
• Providing a $3,000 direct payment to every family member in a household making $150,000 or less
• Capping childcare costs at 7 percent of family income
• Investing in rehabilitating and building new public affordable housing
• Establishing a minimum annual salary of $60,000 for every public school teacher in the U.S.
• Expanding Medicaid home health care for seniors and people with disabilities

“Sen. Sanders and Rep. Khanna are leading the way with a robust policy agenda that benefits working people and does not cower to corporations and billionaires. Americans are tired of the status quo, and if Democrats want to build and maintain power in Congress, they need to grow a backbone and truly stand up for working people.

“We call on every member of Congress to put an end to billionaires gaming the system and finally begin paying their fair share by cosponsoring the Make Billionaires Pay Their Fair Share Act.”

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.