Jayapal, Walkinshaw to discuss expanding Social Sec., Medicare

SEATTLE — Ted Marmor, a leading national voice on public healthcare policy, will be joined by both candidates for Congress in Washington’s 7th District — state Rep. Brady Piñero Walkinshaw and state Sen. Pramila Jayapal — at a forum on how the next Congress could expand Social Security and Medicare. The public is invited to this free forum from 2:30 to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 24 at the Seattle Labor Temple, 2800 1st Ave.

Given our nation’s alarming retirement savings deficit and ongoing struggles to grant all Americans access to health care, the public debate has shifted from congressional proposals to cut or privatize Social Security and Medicare to expanding the benefits of these critical programs. Those proposals include raising or “scrapping the cap” on the Social Security payroll tax to increase benefits, expanding Medicare by opening the program to younger people and covering hearing, vision, and dental services, and other ideas.

Ted Marmor is a Professor Emeritus at Yale University, former Director of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s post-doctoral program in health policy, and is the author (or co-author) of 11 books on public policy focused on health care, Medicare and other social programs. Jayapal and Walkinshaw are running to fill the congressional seat vacated by the retirement of U.S. Rep. Jim McDermott.

Co-sponsoring the Dept. 24 forum are: Health Care Is a Human Right – WA; Physicians for a National Health Program – Western WA; Puget Sound Advocates for Retirement Action (PSARA); Health Care for All – WA; WA State Labor Council, AFL-CIO; WA Community Action Network; UFCW 21; SEIU 775; UAW 4121; and SEIU 1199NW.

For more information, see the event flier.