National Nurses United

A P R I L | M AY | J U N E 2 0 2 6 W W W . N A T I O N A L N U R S E S U N I T E D . O R G N A T I O N A L N U R S E 11 N urses understand that priorities can be the differ- ence between life or death. When a hospital CEO values corporate profits over investing in safe staffing, medication errors or missed inter- ventions can lead to increased patient mortality. When the federal government prioritizes military spending—lining the pockets of corporate war profiteers—instead of funding Medicaid, Medicare, and other public health programs, patients die. Nurses can also see their units shut down or their facilities close entirely. To our outrage, the U.S. government is currently prioritizing illegal warfare over health care, threatening the lives of working people everywhere. On April 1, President Trump told White House luncheon atten- dees, "It's not possible for us to take care of day care, Medicaid, Medicare, all these indi- vidual things … We have to take care of one thing: military protection." His comments came a little more than a month after the Trump administration launched unauthorized military strikes against Iran, without a declaration of war or congressional authorization. In just one month, the Iran conflict killed more than 1,200 people, including civilians, U.S. troops, and as many as 175 victims of a strike on a girls' school. Just that first month alone cost U.S. taxpayers $30 billion, a billion dollars per day. Iran joins a growing list of the Trump administration's recent unconstitutional military escalations, including in Venezuela, Lebanon, and Cuba. How are we funding all this warfare? More than $1 trillion from the budget for Medicaid and Medicare has already been redirected toward military spending, to heavily militarizing ICE, and to give billionaires tax breaks they do not need, thanks to the Republicans' 2025 budget act, H.R. 1. As of this writing, the Trump administration has also sought an additional $1.5 trillion in overall U.S. defense spending, the largest year-over-year increase in a presidential military spending request since World War II, along with $200 billion the Pentagon has sought just for the war in Iran. When we talk about health care reform, universal childcare, or free college tuition, we're always asked, "But how are we going to pay for that?" Meanwhile, our tax dollars are being funneled toward unchecked mili- tary spending. Rather than using our public resources to build the infrastructure we all need to live better, healthier lives, we are squandering them to destroy, kill, and maim—all while further enriching the president and his family, his billionaire tech and Wall Street buddies, and the mili- tary-industrial complex. According to a March report by the National Priorities Project, the $1 billion per day being spent on the war in Iran could cover the cost of Medicaid for all 16 million patients expected to lose it due to Republican budget cuts. Better yet, this military spending could actually be used to guarantee health care for all people, as a human right. We know that Medicare for All would actually save us money by removing the trillions of dollars in unnecessary administrative costs. We could use the federal dollars Trump is seeking for war to revitalize and expand our public health infrastructure that would be needed to care for the influx of patients who would now be able to see a doctor under Medicare for all. Nurses say, "Enough!" to endless war. We are fighting for a whole new way forward, where the priorities that matter to working people come first: Medicare for All, affordable housing, good union jobs, and more. In 2026 and beyond, we are advancing our nurses' Vision for a Healthy Society (see nnu.org/visionpetition), a care plan that demands investment in the health of people and communities, not directing endless billions into more forever wars. In mid-April, nurses also traveled to Washington, D.C. to lobby Congress about passing a series of war powers resolutions on stopping unconstitutional wars in Iran, Venezuela, Lebanon, and Cuba—as well as H.R. 3565, the Block the Bombs Act, legis- lation that takes the necessary first step of blocking the transfer of major U.S. mili- tary weapons to Israel. We're also taking the fight to companies like Palantir that have been enabling surveillance tech in our hospitals and in these unconstitu- tional conflicts. Nurses have successfully fought, along with our allies, to get members of Congress, including U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna, to rescind Palantir donations and commit to not accepting future contributions. NNU's Red Alert: Save Our Hospitals bus tour (covered in our last issue) is still rolling across the country this spring. The tour is drawing attention to NNU facilities most vulnerable to care cuts or closure, thanks to the Republicans' 2025 federal budget law, as nurses call for change. As frontline health care workers, RNs understand that protecting our nation means investing in the health and safety of the working people who live here. Our prior- ities are clear. And we won't stop fighting for a world in which health care comes before warfare, Medicare for All before missiles, and people before profits. Note to readers: This column was written in April 2026. Because this is an evolving story, new and pertinent details may have arisen by the time it goes to print. Our underlying message remains the same: Health over war. Puneet Maharaj is executive director of National Nurses United. Puneet Maharaj Executive Director, National Nurses United Health care, not warfare RNs fight for a nation that values Medicare for All over missiles

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