Weekly News Roundup: Healthcare Reform

 

Most legislators are not especially known for thinking outside the box. It’s telling that today, so many different approaches for health care are being bounced around. Check out this week’s News Roundup featuring some legislators’ latest and greatest ideas, ranging from Medicare-for-Some to Medicare-for-All.

 

Sherrod Brown pushes for Medicare buy-in proposal in place of ‘Medicare for all’

From The Hill. By MICHAEL BURKE – 02/17/19, 02:27 PM EST

Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) on Sunday called for expanding Medicare to people who are 50 years and older rather than pushing for “Medicare for all,”

“I think Medicare for all will take a while. And it’s difficult. And it’s selling it to people who now have insurance that would have to — they would have their insurance plans canceled and move into a government plan,” he said.

“I think that’s difficult,” Brown continued. “I want to help people now. That’s why you do Medicare at 50.”

Where Cory Booker stands on gun rights, legal weed, Medicare for all, and Trump’s wall

By Jonathan D. Salant | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com | February 17, 2019, 07:30 AM

He has signed onto legislation spearheaded by Sanders to offer government insurance to Americans before they reach 65 and become eligible for conventional Medicare.

On the campaign trail, Booker has cast his support for Medicare for All in terms of expanding access to affordable health care.

“Health care is a human right,” he said while campaigning in South Carolina earlier this month. 

2 Liberal Democrats Are Promoting A Twist On ‘Medicare For All’

From HuffPost. By Jonathan Cohn. February 17, 2019.

The legislation, which DeLauro and Schakowsky are calling “Medicare for America,” would create a comprehensive, government-run insurance program that would replace the big existing federal programs as well as the private insurance policies that people today buy on their own. But large employers would get to keep offering private coverage, leaving employees with the choice of sticking with their company plans or moving to the new public option, where they could potentially get much lower premiums and out-of-pocket expenses. 

“Medicare for America” would not only allow employers to keep offering private plans. It would also allow private insurers to keep offering so-called Medicare Advantage plans that roughly one-third of seniors now use instead of traditional Medicare ― and it would allow insurers to offer those plans to non-seniors as well.

 

HEAL California is an independent news and information hub focused on the California Medicare for All movement. We feature non-partisan news, views, podcasts and videos that highlight the continuing failures of our broken healthcare system and elevate the voices of advocates and organizations fighting for change. 

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