House Democrats plan to hold hearings on Medicare for All
By David Weigel for Washington Post The new Democratic majority in the House will hold the first hearings on Medicare-for-All legislation, a longtime goal of the party’s left, after Speaker Nancy Pelosi lent her support for the process. “It’s a huge step forward to have the speaker’s support,” said Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), who will […]
Should Institutional Providers Be Incentivized by Profit under Medicare for All?
By Lambert Strether for Naked Capitalism I’ve avoided writing about hospitals and other institutions, because my focus has always been on the patient, and whether they get, or don’t get, health care under our horrid mixed system of Medicaid, private insurance, and Medicare (subject to a neoliberal infestation though it may be). However, as Medicare […]
Single Payer Not Single Payer
Posted on Single Payer Action The people want single payer. The corporate class answers — not single payer. The people say — single payer — get rid of all the other payers. Get rid of the insurance companies. And while you’re at it, get rid of the health maintenance organizations and accountable care organizations and […]
CBO Will Score All Health Reform Plans as Nationalization
By Jon Walker for People’s Policy Project Opponents of Medicare for All say that the cost will scare people away, but the truth is that, because of the way the CBO scores health care policy, any significant effort to reform health care in a progressive way is going to suffer from the exact same “big […]
Democrats Don’t Just Support Medicare for All, 84% in New Poll Want Party Leaders to Make It ‘Extremely Important Priority’
“Are you listening?” party Leaders asked as new Politico/Harvard survey shows more than 8 in 10 Democrats think covering everyone “through taxpayer-fund national plan” should be urgent pursued By John Queally for Common Dreams ‘Are you listening?’ That was the question posed by healthcare justice advocates to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Speaker of […]
A $20,243 bike crash: Zuckerberg hospital’s aggressive tactics leave patients with big bills
I spent a year writing about ER bills. Zuckerberg San Francisco General has the most surprising billing practices I’ve seen. By Sarah Kliff for Vox On April 3, Nina Dang, 24, found herself in a position like so many San Francisco bike riders — on the pavement with a broken arm. A bystander saw her […]
Over half of Americans delay or don’t get health care because they can’t afford it—these 3 treatments get put off most
By Shawn M. Carter for CNBC With open enrollment for many medical plans in full swing, health care is top of mind for millions of Americans. But health care is still too expensive for most: A majority of U.S. adults have to delay getting the care they need, or put it off completely, because they […]
Insured, But Indebted: Couple Works 5 Jobs To Pay Off Medical Bills
By Jonel Aleccia for NPR Robert and Tiffany Cano of San Tan Valley, Ariz., have a new marriage, a new house and a 10-month-old son, Brody, who is delighted by his ability to blow raspberries. They also have a stack of medical bills that threatens to undermine it all. In the months since their sturdy, […]
25 Ways the Canadian Health Care System is Better than Obamacare
By Ralph Nader on his blog Dear America: Costly complexity is baked into Obamacare. No health insurance system is without problems but Canadian-style single-payer— full Medicare for all— is simple, affordable, comprehensive and universal. In the early 1960s, President Lyndon Johnson enrolled 20 million elderly Americans into Medicare in six months. There were no websites. […]
Two Medicare for All Plans: HR676 and S1804
By Lambert Strether for Naked Capitalism The other day I was trying to find out why Beto O’Rourke, who claims to support Medicare for All, hasn’t signed on to HR676, the single payer bill before the House. On the Twitter, I was provided this link (from The Ringer, an affiliate site of Markos Moulitsas’ SB […]