1. United States
2. Md.
3. Letter

I need you to support legislation that raises the federal minimum wage to a living wage and guarantees healthcare access for all workers. The current $7.25 minimum wage has been frozen since 2009 and is worth less in real terms than it was 30 years ago. Meanwhile, the national median rent for a one-bedroom apartment is $1,502 per month. It takes more than five weeks of full-time minimum wage work just to cover one month's rent, before taxes. This isn't sustainable. Workers cannot afford housing, cannot save, and live one medical emergency away from financial collapse because healthcare vanishes when employment does. When people have no legal path to stability, history shows us what happens next. We're already seeing warning signs in workplace incidents and anger that gets dismissed as personal failure rather than recognized as structural breakdown. Living wages and guaranteed healthcare are not radical demands. They are pressure valves that keep our economy and society stable. My grandfathers' generation could afford housing, education, and vacations on union wages. That should still be possible today. Pass legislation now that ensures full-time work pays enough to live and that healthcare is not tied to employment status.