For Immediate Release
January 24, 2011

Nurses Commit to Campaign for Protecting Social Security, Medicare
Chicago RNs Urge President to Do Same in State of Union Speech

The nation’s largest union and professional association of registered nurses today launched an online advertising buy to promote a web video calling on President Obama to “stand up” to corporate interests and for the millions of voters who elected him, especially in the face of calls for him to undermine Social Security and Medicare as Tuesday’s State of the Union approaches.

The video, which can be viewed here, includes footage from the president’s hometown of Chicago, some of it filmed near his neighborhood.

There is widespread speculation that the president may endorse some of the draconian recommendations the chairs of the deficit commission issued last month that included cuts the 160,000-member National Nurses United say would have “a devastating effect on retirement security for nurses and tens of millions of other Americans, especially in the heat of a persistent recession.”

NNU is joining with other activists around the nation in calling on the president and Congress to stand firm on Social Security and oppose any legislative efforts to pass the deficit commission proposals in the current legislative session.

The video features Chicago nurses urging the president to hold the line on his commitment to hope and change. “We need you to stand up.” Chicago RN Dorothy Ahmad calls on the president to “stand up against any party whose legislative agenda diminishes Social Security and public health services. After a lifetime of hard work, we want to retire with dignity.”

“It is time for the president to stand up and send a clear message to the American people that they will not agree to further erosion of our retirement security and standard of living,” said Karen Higgins, RN, co-president of the 160,000-member National Nurses United.