Illinois Volunteers Lead Efforts to Tackle Health Care and Financial Security
By: Source: AARP.org Date Posted: 2007-09-28 13:58:54.101807-04:00
Illinois AARP volunteers are demanding answers and accountability from our elected officials on issues of health care and financial security. Across the state the Divided We Fail movement has taken off, gaining support from the public at key events such as the Illinois State Fair, where volunteers clad in red Divided We Fail t-shirts gathered nearly 1,000 signatures from voters who are concerned about the issues.
Divided We Fail is a national movement that AARP has launched to raise the voices of millions of Americans who believe that health care and lifetime financial security are the most pressing domestic issues facing our nation. Citizens have the right to demand that our candidates address these critical issues and, when elected, keep their campaign promises. If they don't, we have the right to hold them accountable.
Health Care
The health care system is broken. Too many Americans are just one major illness or injury away from financial ruin due to the skyrocketing costs of the current system.
- Forty-six million Americans are uninsured.
- Twenty-nine percent say they have skipped treatment, tests or prescriptions because of costs.
- To cover health care costs, 53% of Americans had to decrease contributions to other savings, 37% had difficulty paying for other bills, 36% decreased contributions to retirement plans, 33% used up all or most of their savings, and 28% had difficulty paying for basic necessities like food, heat and housing.
Financial Security
Lifetime financial security is a cornerstone of the American dream, but it is a dream that is getting harder to realize for many Americans.- Only 1 out of 5 workers today has a traditional pension plan.
- Just 1/2 of families have saved money in a retirement account and the typical family has saved less than $35,000. Only 25% of Baby Boomers feel that they are prepared for retirement.
Health care and lifetime financial security are critical to the citizens of Illinois. AARP has heard dire stories of from individuals across the state who fear that they will not be able to sustain a comfortable retirement and whose health care costs have spiraled out of control. Over 5,000 Illinoisans have taken the Divided We Fail pledge and more than 200 have shared a personal story about how health care or financial security issues have impacted their lives. We have made huge strides in Illinois, but the fight is not over.
Get involved! Join the Divided We Fail movement. Sign a pledge card, share your story, or become a Divided We Fail volunteer and make a difference in your local community. You can also call the AARP Illinois State Office at 1-866-448-3613 for more information.
Divided we fail. Together we can do anything.
preview