HEALTH CARE FOR ALL

Ricky envisions an America that wholeheartedly supports and implements a comprehensive universal public health care system. The time has come for our nation to reject the damaging practice of prioritizing profits over the well-being of its citizens. It is a disgrace that the United States remains the only industrialized nation in the Western world that does not guarantee health care for all individuals residing within its borders.

Health care should be a fundamental responsibility of the federal government, dedicated to preserving the welfare of its people rather than serving as a profit-driven enterprise for corporations. Public health and wellness should not be viewed as a commodity but rather as an essential service that spans from prenatal care to end-of-life support.

In today’s world, it is unacceptable for America to willingly allocate vast financial resources to the Military Industrial Complex while claiming it is either “impossible” or “too expensive” to provide necessary health care to its citizens due to insurance complexities. Families should never have to worry about whether their doctor “accepts their insurance plan.” We must catch up with the global standard.

Ricky believes in an America where health care is viewed as a collective social responsibility, upheld by all citizens and taxpaying residents through the hard work and entrepreneurial spirit that define us. Access to health care should not be contingent on employment status; every individual deserves health care—without exception. Ricky advocates for universal health care for all—period.

Ricky believes that a woman’s health care decisions are deeply personal and should remain solely her own. In a society that prides itself on freedom, a woman’s right to make crucial health care choices regarding her body must not be undermined beyond the protections already established by law.

This right encompasses access to birth control, abortions, and any other necessary medical services. It is time for the government to cease enacting legislation that controls a woman’s body and instead to implement policies that empower her to care for her health.

Under Ricky’s health care plan, all individuals capable of giving birth will have the unequivocal right to make their own reproductive choices. This includes a fundamental right to abortion that shall not be restricted under any circumstances.

America cannot progress as a society while lawmaking authority is entrusted to those intent on eroding these established health care rights, motivated by the lure of campaign donations or the need for religious appeasement. It is essential that we uphold and protect these rights for the well-being of all.

Ricky believes that the United States has the potential to become the healthiest country in the world and a gold standard for health management, and this begins with education.

As previously stated elsewhere, an uneducated population is a weak one. Ricky believes that all Americans should be well-informed on health care, beginning with sex education and access to sanitation products in school, through higher learning addressing sexually-transmitted diseases such as HIV/AIDS and syphilis.

As a country, Ricky believes, we owe it to all people living within these boards to make this information readily available to all those that seek it, and it must be included in our school programs. Children must understand the nuances of health and wellness.

Ricky believes in the vital role and significance of America’s nurses. They carry the heaviest burdens in hospitals and other medical settings, engaging directly with patients and administering treatment, often under the guidance of a physician or physician’s assistant. As a community, we have not adequately recognized or appreciated these dedicated professionals.

To address this, Ricky advocates for an increase in the number of nurses and for enhanced programs that better prepare them for the workforce. Alongside further investments in our national health care system, we must support initiatives that encourage the recruitment and retention of nurses in hospitals, clinics, and schools. This should be a key component of our broader labor reform proposals.

A stronger and better-equipped nursing workforce is essential for a robust American health care system. We can build an improved health care system piece by piece, but it must start with how we treat, compensate, schedule, train, and respect our nurses. Our nursing workforce is the backbone of health care in America, and we must do everything possible to ensure their contributions are recognized and valued.

Ricky envisions an America that decisively ends the failed War on Drugs. This misguided law enforcement initiative has disproportionately impacted communities of color [especially Black communities], resulting in the incarceration of millions of African American and Hispanic individuals over the years. Substance abuse should not be viewed as a crime but as a health issue that requires medical attention.

It’s time to establish a transformative new drug policy. We must decriminalize and regulate the use of recreational cannabis, ensuring that all individuals incarcerated for non-violent cannabis offenses are released and have their records expunged. We cannot allow the profit-driven pharmaceutical industry to dictate our path forward—lives depend on it.

Ricky will support any legislative measure that:

• Decriminalizes, taxes, and regulates the safe sale and use of cannabis.
• Retroactively expunges all non-violent cannabis-related criminal records.
• Redirects all public revenues toward the development of a universal health care system, tuition-free higher education, and enhanced public services.