Baird, Addy. (2017, September 13). Single-payer health care is gaining steam. These are the people who made it possible. ThinkProgress. Retrieved from https://thinkprogress.org
The grassroots activists who paved the way for this political moment.
If you’re a Democratic party star who’s being talked about as a potential 2020 candidate for president, you probably recently announced your support for single-payer legislation.
Sen. Bernie Sanders will unveil his Medicare for All bill on Wednesday afternoon, flanked by high-profile co-sponsors including Sens. Kamala Harris (D-CA), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY).
It’s a sharp departure from the mainstream political conversation just a year ago, when Sanders was running against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination. During the campaign, Sanders’ advocacy for a single-payer system was popular among a large section of the progressive base but didn’t have this kind of full-throated support from other leaders of the Democratic Party.
Asked about Sanders’ Medicare for All platform last April, Clinton said she agreed with the goal of universal coverage but couldn’t support his single-payer bill. Read more . . .
COMMENTARY:
Could it be that the Democratic Party is finally coming around on Medicare for All? Perhaps, but only if we make them.
Based on the experience of the Democratic Party’s turn on marriage equality, we may have a few years to go before we see an actual turnabout. And of course, nothing will change at all unless We The People keep pushing and pushing our political leaders to act.
According to a July 30, 2012 press release by the Human Rights Campaign, applauding the Democratic Party’s decision to include marriage equality in their platform, support for the issue had been growing steadily for over a decade:
Support for marriage equality has risen quickly and consistently over the last decade, with 53 percent of Americans now supporting marriage rights for gay and lesbian couples. According to a recent Gallup poll, 70 percent of young voters aged 18-34 support marriage equality and a Public Religion Research Institute poll puts support at 49 percent among younger Republicans (Millenials). 58 percent of all Independent voters support marriage for gays and lesbians, according to a Washington Post/ABC News poll.
Yet only then, after it became politically toxic to oppose marriage equality, did we see Hilary Clinton and other party heavyweights slowly change their minds.
As for single-payer/Medicare for All, Americans’ attitudes toward health care are undergoing a sea change, with a majority now believing it is the government’s responsibility to provide health care to all. A June 23, 2017 study by Pew Research showed a measurable growth in support for single payer over a period of only 6 months (from January to June 2017), especially among Democrats. And while only 33% of all people polled support single payer-type system, a majority of Democrats polled do support it.
Yet many in the Democratic Party cling to the past. Could it be they are seduced by the generous campaign donations they enjoy from the insurance industry? Get to know the top contributors in the health insurance industry from OpenSecrets.org and decide for yourself.
Whatever the reason, it cannot be denied that progress toward a national Medicare for All program will be slow. It is more likely that a state – like California – can lead the nation to true healthcare equality. After all, state by state is how we won marriage equality!
What YOU Can DO
If you agree that we need California Medicare for All, take action!
> Tell your State Assemblymember to co-sponsor SB 562, The Healthy California Act!
> Sign our Open Letter to Governor Brown and Our Legislative Leaders!
Dear Governor Brown, Senate President Pro Tem DeLeón and Assembly Speaker Rendon:
Californians need and want guaranteed healthcare that covers everybody for everything for life!
We support the Healthy California Act introduced by Senator Ricardo Lara and co-sponsored by Senator Toni Atkins.
Help all Californians fight the heartless and cruel threats to our health care from Washington DC.
Let’s HEAL California with SB 562, the Healthy California Act!
Yours Truly,
