It’s hard not to follow the debate around national health care reform, huh? I wasn’t able to sit down for Thanksgiving dinner without a heated discussion with my family, and I expect the upcoming holidays to be no different. In a lot of ways that’s a good thing; it’s an important issue that is getting the attention it deserves. Unfortunately a critical discussion has been missing in the debate--how national reform will affect freelancers and other independent workers. If you make over $43,000 or under $72,000 you fall into a gray area where your coverage is up in the air. You make too much to qualify for the public subsidies that will be available, yet you don’t make enough to afford purchasing a comprehensive plan on the open market. **That means you can expect to pay more money for less coverage. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that you’d be paying 10-13% more for your current health coverage. ** **That doesn’t sound too appealing to us. **But it doesn’t have to be that way. For over 10 years Freelancers Union has been doing things differently. For the first time ever freelancers were able to group together like an employer and offer affordable, portable, health insurance. We’ll continue to fight for health care reform, by supporting a public plan and health insurance for not only independent workers, but all Americans, but we need to make sure we don’t roll back on the progress we’ve made for independent workers. Will you take two minutes to urge Senator Schumer to protect your access to group-rate health insurance? Our link will guide you through making the call.