WASHINGTON -- Executives from Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and three other major employers on Wednesday joined hands with union leaders in setting a goal of providing ÿquality, affordableÿ health care for every American by 2012.þþHowever, they did not propose any specific policies to achieve this goal, or commit to spending any extra money in the near term to provide health coverage to more workers.þþJoining Wal-Mart Chief Executive Lee Scott and Service Employees International Union leader Andrew Stern were top executives from Intel Corp., AT&T Inc. and Kelly Services Inc., a temporary staffing agency. Still, the health-care initiative left Wal-Mart's two leading union critics divided.þþThe partnership of business and union leaders laid out four main goals, including universal health-care coverage for all Americans and boosting the value of every dollar spent on health care.þþÿGovernment alone won't and can't solve this crisis,ÿ Scott said.þþÿBy following this campaign's common sense principles, we believe America can have high quality, affordable and accessible health care by 2012,ÿ he said.þþBut Scott and others did not lay out a detailed plan, and in response to a reporter's question he said Wal-Mart is not committed to spending more on health care or making any immediate promises to provide health coverage to more workers. Wal-Mart employs 1.3 million in the U.S. and is the nation's largest private employer.þþThe SEIU, which represents 1.8 million health-care workers, janitors, security guards and other service employees, funds campaign group Wal-Mart Watch, which as recently as last month said Wal-Mart's health plans were a raw deal for employees.þþBut Stern said he joined Wal-Mart and the other employers because America's health-care system requires fundamental change.þþÿIt's time to admit the employer-based health-care system is dead,ÿ Stern said.þþPaul Blank, the campaign director for WakeUpWalMart.com, gave only tepid support for the plan in a prepared statement.þþÿIf Wal-Mart is truly serious,ÿ Blank said, ÿwe challenge the company to provide universal health care to all of its uninsured employees and their families today.ÿþþBlank's group is funded by the United Food and Commercial Workers, which did not participate in Wednesday's press conference. þ
Source: Chicago Tribune
