[Fern]

Helathcare should NOT be tied to employment. Everyone deserves basic adequate health care regardless of whether they are working.

It causes a lot of problems for people if they are laid off or otherwise lose their jobs; if it happens to be during an economic downturn, it can get very, very expensive to maintain the health coverage you had with your employer because the employer will no longer pay a share of the monthly premium, (COBRA) so you could end up paying, as i did, about $500 a month (as a single person) just to continue health insurance coverage.

It's also very problematic for anyone with a pre-existing, chronic health condition. I have one that requires very expensive medication, so i can't afford to take chances and go without health coverage. Again, it presents a dilemma if, say, i wanted to retire earlier than age 65,when Medicare kicks in. If i wanted to semi-retire at age 55, i'd have to figure out how to pay for continued health costs/medication out of pocket, not very easy when your meds cost $1,000/month. It also has prevented me from continuing my own small business, because as a self-employed person you don't have access to the same guaranteed health coverage at affordable prices if you have a pre-existing condition. Employees have better protection in this regard.