{"id":4705,"date":"2017-04-16T11:43:28","date_gmt":"2017-04-16T18:43:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=4705"},"modified":"2017-04-16T11:43:28","modified_gmt":"2017-04-16T18:43:28","slug":"single-payer-health-care-seeing-record-support-congress-truthout-org","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2017\/04\/16\/single-payer-health-care-seeing-record-support-congress-truthout-org\/","title":{"rendered":"Single-Payer Health Care Is Seeing Record Support in Congress (truthout.org)"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"aolmail_gmail-itemToolbar\">\n<ul>\n<li><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/images\/images_2017_04\/2017_0416med_.jpg\" alt=\"Health care activists outside the Massachusetts State House on the April 8th National Day of Action for Medicare for All. This was one of many events held across the country.\u00a0(Photo: Dave Madeloni)\" width=\"640\" \/><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"aolmail_gmail-itemFullText\">\n<p><em><span class=\"aolmail_gmail-wf_caption\">Health care activists outside the Massachusetts State House on the April 8th National Day of Action for Medicare for All. This was one of many events held across the country.\u00a0(Photo: Dave Madeloni)<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p>April 16,2017<\/p>\n<p>The primary Medicare for All bill has more support in Congress now than it has ever before.<\/p>\n<p>John Conyers&#8217; Medicare for All bill (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/115th-congress\/house-bill\/676\/cosponsors\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">HR 676<\/a>), which he has introduced in each Congress since 2003, has seen a recent surge of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/115th-congress\/house-bill\/676\/cosponsors\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">new cosponsors<\/a>\u00a0&#8212; 32 since March 8 and nine on April 3 alone. As of this writing there are 93 co-signers (and counting), representing more than 48 percent of the Democratic Caucus. This is the highest number of cosponsors ever, both in terms of members and as a percentage of the House Democratic Caucus. The count is up from just 62 cosigners &#8212; 33 percent of Democrats &#8212; in\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/114th-congress\/house-bill\/676\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">the last Congress<\/a>, and an average of 37 percent since the bill was\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/108th-congress\/house-bill\/676\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">first introduced<\/a>\u00a0in 2003 (see chart).<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"aolmail_gmail-wf_caption\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/images\/images_2017_04\/2017_0416med_2.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/images\/images_2017_04\/2017_0416med_2.jpg\" alt=\"(Credit: PNHP)\" width=\"350\" \/><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span class=\"aolmail_gmail-wf_caption\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/images\/images_2017_04\/2017_0416med_2.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Click to open larger in a new window.<\/a> (Credit: PNHP)<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p>This is an astonishing development for many reasons. Just a year ago the Democratic establishment was recklessly (and\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/news\/item\/38375-even-after-trump-is-gone-fallout-from-democratic-primaries-may-haunt-single-payer-efforts\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">disingenuously<\/a>)\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/news\/item\/34499-hillary-clinton-declares-war-on-single-payer-health-care\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">maligning the policy<\/a>\u00a0to help keep Sen. Bernie Sanders from winning the Democratic Primary. Further, facing a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/pressgallery.house.gov\/member-data\/party-breakdown\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">large GOP majority<\/a>, Democrats and activists have also been forced to &#8220;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/news\/item\/38658-playing-defense-how-progressives-could-push-democrats-to-block-the-trump-agenda\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">play defense<\/a>&#8221; just to prevent Donald Trump and the GOP from kicking\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbo.gov\/publication\/52486\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">24 million<\/a>\u00a0Americans off their insurance and\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/health-shots\/2017\/02\/22\/516465156\/gop-seeks-reduction-in-health-law-s-10-essential-benefits\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">doing away<\/a>\u00a0with\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.healthcare.gov\/glossary\/essential-health-benefits\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">essential benefits<\/a>\u00a0like mental health and emergency room visits. These, of course, are important benefits of the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.govtrack.us\/congress\/bills\/111\/hr3590\/text\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Affordable Care Act<\/a>\u00a0(ACA), which improved access to health insurance, but leaves about\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.vox.com\/2017\/4\/7\/15225800\/30-million-americans-are-still-uninsured-inequality\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">30 million Americans uninsured<\/a>.\u00a0The ACA also can&#8217;t\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/content.healthaffairs.org\/content\/early\/2015\/07\/15\/hlthaff.2015.0600\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">control rapidly escalating health costs<\/a>,\u00a0a trend which has\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/news\/nation\/2014\/06\/05\/premiums-grew-average-of-10-before-affordable-care-act\/9960093\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">long been a central problem of our health system<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Indeed, the need for reform beyond the ACA is becoming increasingly clear. A\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/polling-institute\/reports\/MonmouthPoll_US_020717\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Monmouth poll<\/a>\u00a0from February showed that 25 percent of Americans view health care as &#8220;the biggest concern facing their family right now.&#8221; Health care was, by far, the most cited concern, dwarfing issues like immigration (3 percent) and terrorism (2 percent).<\/p>\n<p>Public support for Medicare for All has been confirmed by pollsters for years. An April 6 poll from\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/d25d2506sfb94s.cloudfront.net\/cumulus_uploads\/document\/divhts7l9t\/econTabReport.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">the Economist\/YouGov<\/a>\u00a0showed 60 percent of the public support for the policy,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.pnhp.org\/news\/2017\/april\/it%E2%80%99s-not-just-democrats-and-liberals-who-support-medicare-for-all\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">including\u00a0from<\/a>\u00a0a plurality of\u00a0Republicans.<\/p>\n<p>The latest increase in support for Medicare for All, according to advocates, activists and congressional staffers who spoke with Truthout, can also be attributed to several other factors, including the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/newrepublic.com\/article\/141651\/trumpcares-failure-sets-stage-single-payer\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">unintended consequences<\/a>\u00a0of the\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/tv\/news\/watch-samantha-bee-compare-trumpcare-fail-to-atlanta-falcons-w474202\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">TrumpCare debacle<\/a>\u00a0and the work of activists\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/news\/item\/39602-fair-game-the-resistance-puts-pressure-on-complicit-democrats\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pressuring Democrats<\/a>\u00a0from the left. The\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/news\/item\/37326-how-sanders-shaped-the-national-discourse-on-class-a-media-analysis\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">impactful rise of Bernie Sanders<\/a>, who plans on\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/digital.vpr.net\/post\/bernie-sanders-introduce-single-payer-health-care-bill-us-senate\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">introducing his own<\/a>\u00a0Medicare for All bill in the Senate, has also been key. Plus, the end of\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.huffingtonpost.com\/entry\/van-jones-democrats-2017_us_58692e93e4b0de3a08f8d581\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Hillary Clinton&#8217;s<\/a>\u00a0campaign (and her role as the de facto head of the party), has led to more support for single payer, since she ran against<a href=\"https:\/\/www.healthcare-now.org\/blog\/video-clinton-attacks-single-payer\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\u00a0the policy<\/a>\u00a0with such militancy &#8212; and lost.<\/p>\n<p>There is still a long way to go. Republicans have an iron grip on Congress. The Senate is,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/progressivepicks\/item\/34794-us-guardian-elite-rulers-date-back-to-nation-s-founding\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">by\u00a0design<\/a>, a major obstacle to progress and democracy. Plus, the drug and insurance industries retain\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.publicintegrity.org\/2013\/02\/11\/12175\/opinion-big-pharmas-stranglehold-washington\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">immense influence<\/a>. But the growing momentum for this reform has organizers hopeful that we are at a turning point &#8212; that a public universal healthcare system in the US may not be as far off as it once seemed. &#8220;I have been introducing the Medicare for All bill every session of Congress since 2003, and I&#8217;m the longest serving member of Congress,&#8221; Conyers said\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/newrepublic.com\/minutes\/141752\/john-conyerss-medicare-bill-gains-steam-wake-t\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">in a\u00a0statement<\/a>. &#8220;I have never seen more enthusiasm and energy behind this issue than what I&#8217;m seeing today.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Role of HR 676 in the Battle for Health Care Justice\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It has been 14 years since Conyers\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/108th-congress\/house-bill\/676\/cosponsors\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">first introduced<\/a>\u00a0HR 676, officially called the\u00a0Expanded &amp; Improved Medicare For All Act. The language is simple enough. &#8220;This bill establishes the Medicare for All Program to provide all individuals residing in the United States and U.S. territories with free health care that includes all medically necessary care,&#8221; and &#8220;only public or nonprofit institutions may participate.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>In a global context, this is not a particularly radical idea. Similar systems exist all around the developed world &#8212; they cover everyone and do it\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/data.oecd.org\/healthres\/health-spending.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">at about<\/a>\u00a0half the cost. While Conyers&#8217; bill has never been scored by the CBO [Congressional Budget Office], there have been\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.pnhp.org\/facts\/single-payer-system-cost\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">many studies<\/a>\u00a0that show tremendous\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.pnhp.org\/sites\/default\/files\/Funding%20HR%20676_Friedman_7.31.13_proofed.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">savings from HR 676<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.pnhp.org\/slideshow\/Thorpe_2005A.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">single-payer health care<\/a>\u00a0in general. Support for the bill, however, was quite limited, especially at first. Only 38 House Democrats (18 percent)\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/108th-congress\/house-bill\/676\/cosponsors\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">cosponsored<\/a>\u00a0it when it was introduced. Eventually it gained more supporters, peaking at\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/110th-congress\/house-bill\/676\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">93 in\u00a02010<\/a>\u00a0but this was back when Democrats had just won large majorities in 2006 and 93 sponsors only represented 42 percent of the caucus.<\/p>\n<p>That was the high water mark until now, with less than a third of Democrats signing on to the law in the last two Congresses (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/113th-congress\/house-bill\/676\/cosponsors\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">113<\/a>th,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/114th-congress\/house-bill\/676\/cosponsors\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">114<\/a>th). In essence HR 676 has served mostly as an organizing tool, widely\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.medicareforall.org\/pages\/HR676\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">used by advocates<\/a>\u00a0to help educate the public. But now that it has gained the support of half the caucus, its status is elevated: The bill is now viewed by many lawmakers as a viable path to reform. And activists continue to push for more support.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"aolmail_gmail-wf_caption\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/images\/images_2017_04\/2017_0416med_3.jpg\" alt=\"(Credit: Michael Corcoran)\" width=\"640\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span class=\"aolmail_gmail-wf_caption\">(Credit: Michael Corcoran)<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Our goal is to get to 110 by the end of the recess [April 25th],&#8221; said Dr. Carol Paris, the president of\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.pnhp.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Physicians for a National Health\u00a0Program<\/a>\u00a0(PNHP), in an interview with Truthout. &#8220;We think the enthusiasm and energy behind this bill reflect how much Americans care about this issue.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><strong>The TrumpCare Debacle Helps Single-Payer<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>As noted above, the new energy behind this bill is due to something of a perfect storm of factors. One of the most important, advocates say, is the impact of the debate over a Republican repeal of the ACA, or\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/health\/health-care\/gop-health-care-bill-tweaks-ahca-make-people-hate-it-n736466\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">TrumpCare<\/a>. The entire process was an\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/health\/health-care\/gop-health-care-bill-tweaks-ahca-make-people-hate-it-n736466\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">abject failure<\/a>\u00a0for Republicans, of course. But it also added to the anxiety of millions of Americans who were rightly indignant to learn that the bill would jeopardize the insurance &#8212; and indeed the lives &#8212; of tens of millions of Americans, and rip Medicaid to shreds. A March 23\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/poll.qu.edu\/national\/release-detail?ReleaseID=2443\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Quinnipiac poll<\/a>\u00a0showed a paltry 17 percent of Americans supported the GOP plan, and only 41 percent of Republicans.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;There is a fire [that] has been lit under a lot of people, especially since the collapse of the Trump bill,&#8221; said Benjamin Day, executive director of single-payer advocacy group\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.healthcare-now.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Healthcare-NOW<\/a>, in an interview with Truthout.<\/p>\n<p>As the debate over the GOP health reform plans took place, Democrats held numerous town halls, ostensibly with the noble goal of protecting the ACA. But, as Paris puts it, &#8220;voters weren&#8217;t there just to talk about the Affordable Care Act.&#8221; A\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/powerpost\/health-care-win-has-democrats--and-their-voters--wanting-more\/2017\/03\/26\/8a2e4142-1237-11e7-833c-503e1f6394c9_story.html?utm_term=.85dc68f0756f\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Washington Post<\/a>\u00a0article about the GOP surrender on repeal observed that at town hall meetings &#8220;progressives in blue America celebrated &#8212; then asked for more.&#8221; Even getting Medicare for All mentioned in the dominant media is a victory, given their long\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/fair.org\/home\/media-find-room-for-trumpcare-too-progressive-but-not-for-single-payer\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">record of ignoring<\/a>\u00a0the policy.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;At town hall meetings people continually asked Democrats about Medicare for All. I was at a meeting and as soon as it was mentioned the room erupted in applause,&#8221; Paris said. &#8220;Some Democrats wanted to keep the debate narrow and only talk about protecting the ACA. But people weren&#8217;t willing to let that stand.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The scare TrumpCare put into Americans also brought to light a phenomenon known as &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.behavioraleconomics.com\/mini-encyclopedia-of-be\/loss-aversion\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">loss\u00a0aversion<\/a>.&#8221; The basics of this tendency, according to a March 24\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/03\/24\/upshot\/health-insurance-medicare-obamacare-american-health-care-act.html?_r=0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">New\u00a0York Times article<\/a>\u00a0by Robert H. Frank, &#8220;is that\u00a0the\u00a0pain of losing something\u00a0you already have is much\u00a0greater than having gained it in the first place.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;In the end, the repeal effort&#8217;s biggest hurdle\u00a0may have been loss aversion, one of the most robust findings in behavioral science,&#8221; Frank said in the article, which is headlined &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/03\/24\/upshot\/health-insurance-medicare-obamacare-american-health-care-act.html?_r=0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">What&#8217;s Next After\u00a0Obamacare, the Case for Medicare for All<\/a>.&#8221; With Americans increasingly protective over their health insurance, the prospects for single-payer, which would guarantee them insurance &#8212; which the ACA fails to do &#8212; becomes a comforting thought to a public that,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.pewresearch.org\/fact-tank\/2017\/01\/13\/more-americans-say-government-should-ensure-health-care-coverage\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">according to a Pew poll<\/a>\u00a0from January, believes that &#8220;the government should be responsible for ensuring health care coverage for all Americans.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>This is a reason why debate over cutting benefits in the ACA backfired on the GOP. The ACA has only<a href=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-us-canada-39157793\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\u00a0gone up in popularity<\/a>\u00a0during the repeal effort. &#8220;The ACA has plenty of problems and is not universal.\u00a0But, to its credit, if the ACA didn&#8217;t do anything else, it gave many Americans a sense that universal health care is possible,&#8221; Paris said.<\/p>\n<p>Likewise, as Republicans debated the issue, the single-payer movement was benefiting. Advocates spoke of\u00a0dramatic increases in the number of letters to the editor, web traffic and a pronounced uptick in social media interest. The\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/doctorsforsinglepayer\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Facebook page for PNHP<\/a>, for instance, is now up above 50,000 members. Google Trends shows a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/trends.google.com\/trends\/explore?date=today%203-m&amp;q=%22Medicare%20for%20All%22,%22single-payer%22\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">dramatic spike in searches<\/a>\u00a0for &#8220;Medicare for All,&#8221; and &#8220;single-payer,&#8221; just as the GOP repeal bill was being debated in Congress (see image).<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;People are getting pissed off, and the collapse of any alternative from the right is making Medicare for All a more obvious solution,&#8221; Day said. In this context, it is noteworthy that\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/115th-congress\/house-bill\/676\/cosponsors\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">22 new\u00a0cosponsors came<\/a>\u00a0out in favor of HR 676 soon after the GOP abandoned its own bill.<\/p>\n<p><strong>A Strategy Paying Off: Progressive Groups Pressuring Democrats\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Another major reason for the new support for Medicare for All is the energetic activist base that has grown out of the Sanders campaign and in reaction to Trump&#8217;s election. As Truthout recently<a href=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/news\/item\/39602-fair-game-the-resistance-puts-pressure-on-complicit-democrats\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\u00a0reported<\/a>, Democrats, to\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/powerpost\/democrats-brace-for-town-hall-protests-directed-at-them\/2017\/02\/14\/923365e4-f300-11e6-a9b0-ecee7ce475fc_story.html?utm_term=.aadce03dd6a2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">the\u00a0chagrin of many<\/a>\u00a0in the establishment, have not been immune to pressure from activists. An important part of many\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/news\/item\/38113-after-bernie-will-our-revolution-deliver-on-its-promise-of-political-revolution\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">organizations&#8217; strategies<\/a>\u00a0is to try and elect as many left-leaning progressives to positions of political power, from Congress all the way down to animal control officer. Some groups, such as\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/wewillreplaceyou.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">WeWillReplaceYou.org<\/a>, are threatening corporate Democrats with the prospect of a primary opponent if they aren&#8217;t sufficiently strong on key issues.<\/p>\n<p>Medicare for All is a key issue for many of these groups, which include\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/brandnewcongress.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Brand New Congress<\/a>,<a href=\"http:\/\/go.justicedemocrats.com\/page\/s\/take-a-stand\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\u00a0Justice Democrats<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.nationalnursesunited.org\/site\/entry\/medicare-for-all\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">National Nurses United<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/pdamerica.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Progressive Democrats of\u00a0America<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.fight4medicare.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Medicare4All<\/a>, and the\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.laborforsinglepayer.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Labor for Single-Payer\u00a0coalition<\/a>\u00a0featuring unions across the country. Our Revolution, the organization launched by Sanders following his campaign, has not\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/ourrevolution.com\/candidates\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">made endorsements for the\u00a02018<\/a>\u00a0elections, but will almost assuredly emphasize support for single-payer in selecting candidates. &#8220;We support creating a federally administered single-payer health care program,&#8221; the group clearly states on\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/ourrevolution.com\/issues\/medicare-for-all\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">its page<\/a>\u00a0devoted to Medicare for All.<\/p>\n<p>Brand New Congress, a\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/opinion\/item\/36701-brand-new-congress-works-to-launch-progressive-upstarts-into-office\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">group that aims<\/a>\u00a0to find progressive candidates for every seat in Congress that doesn&#8217;t already have one, has been very active in trying to &#8220;pressure Democrats into backing Medicare for all,&#8221; said cofounder Saikat Chakrabarti, in an interview with Truthout. They\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BrandNew535\/status\/846862829730836480\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">issued a petition<\/a>\u00a0citing the then &#8220;119 Democrats who are not supporting Medicare for All,&#8221; not long before this latest spike in support. Since then they have been able to cross 26 names off that list.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to petitions and letter-writing there have also been several\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/campaignforguaranteedhealthcare.org\/april-8-actions-for-improved-medicare-for-all\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">national days of action<\/a>, including one on Saturday, April 8. Events like this have been drawing crowds and\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/news\/item\/39154-medicare-for-all-a-uniting-call-to-action-in-the-age-of-trump\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">soliciting actions<\/a>\u00a0since Trump&#8217;s inauguration.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Sanders Effect and the Coming Senate Legislation<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Many of the organizations behind this effort were founded, and are largely made up of staffers and volunteers from the Sanders presidential campaign. And, there is no doubt that his campaign has been instrumental in educating and rallying the public behind this and other issues. Truthout has previously\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/news\/item\/37326-how-sanders-shaped-the-national-discourse-on-class-a-media-analysis\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">measured the considerable impact<\/a>\u00a0Sanders had on bringing attention to single-payer and in awakening class consciousness in many new people.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I think his effect on the health care debate has been monumental,&#8221; said Ken Zinn, political director of\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.nationalnursesunited.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">National Nurses United<\/a>, in an interview with Truthout.\u00a0&#8220;When you have a major candidate talk about it at every single stump speech, it opens minds.&#8221; Zinn&#8217;s organization was a\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.nationalnursesunited.org\/press\/entry\/nurses-endorse-sen.-bernie-sanders-for-president\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">staunch supporter<\/a>\u00a0of the Sander&#8217;s candidacy for President and is rallying\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.healthcare-now.org\/blog\/why-did-single-payer-health-care-fail-in-california\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">behind HR 676<\/a>\u00a0and \u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.mercurynews.com\/2017\/02\/17\/california-lawmakers-to-introduce-medicare-for-all-health-plan-on-friday\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">state-wide single-payer<\/a>\u00a0in California.<\/p>\n<p>Sanders will introduce his\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/news\/item\/39996-sen-bernie-sanders-will-introduce-medicare-for-all-bill\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">own single-payer legislation<\/a>\u00a0in the Senate in the coming weeks. Rep. Peter Welch, the lone Vermont member of the House (and one of the cosponsors to HR 676), has said he will issue a\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/news\/item\/39996-sen-bernie-sanders-will-introduce-medicare-for-all-bill\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">sibling bill<\/a>\u00a0in the House.\u00a0Advocates are eager to see the specifics of the Sanders bill, and to discover which senators, if any, will cosponsor. Sanders has been on an island in his single-payer support since joining the Senate in 2006, and when he introduced legislation\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.pnhp.org\/news\/2011\/may\/bernie-sanders-introduces-single-payer-bill-in-senate\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">in the Senate<\/a>\u00a0previously, he failed to win over a single cosponsor.<\/p>\n<p>But advocates are confident that, armed with his\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/interactive\/2017\/03\/15\/fox-news-poll-315\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">massive popularity<\/a>\u00a0and the collective momentum for the issue, he will find cosponsors this time. Several newer members of the Senate were cosponsors of Conyers&#8217; bill when they were in the House. This<a href=\"http:\/\/www.medicareforall.org\/support_by_state.php?state=MA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\u00a0includes\u00a0Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey<\/a>\u00a0who, Day speculates, is more likely to cosponsor Sander&#8217;s bill than Sen. Elizabeth Warren is.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I am very confident there will be cosponsors this time,&#8221; Day said. It is a safe bet that progressives will take a long hard look at those names and pressure those who are not supportive to get on board.<\/p>\n<p>Advocates have also been pleased to hear that Sanders is introducing, as Paris describes it, a &#8220;real Medicare for All bill,&#8221; as earlier rumors suggested he might instead go with half measures like the &#8220;public option,&#8221; or lowering the age restriction on Medicare to 55. The public option and the lowering of the Medicare age limit,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.truth-out.org\/opinion\/item\/40044-why-this-isn-t-the-time-for-a-public-option-or-medicare-for-some\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">according to Margaret Flowers<\/a>, could both backfire if implemented. She argues they would remove sick patients from the risk pool for private plans, making the public plans appear to be less efficient. &#8220;We hear this is a strong plan and there is a lot of meat on the bone,&#8221; Paris said of Sanders&#8217; new proposal.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Moving On:\u00a0Democrats and Health Reform in Post-Clinton Era\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>As noted, Sen. Elizabeth Warren has\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.medicareforall.org\/support_by_state.php?state=MA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">never publicly supported<\/a>\u00a0single-payer. But advocates\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.pnhp.org\/news\/2016\/november\/health-reform-in-the-trump-era\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">took notice<\/a>\u00a0when right after Trump&#8217;s victory,<a href=\"http:\/\/www.salon.com\/2016\/11\/15\/elizabeth-warren-obamacare-wasnt-bold-enough\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\u00a0she criticized<\/a>\u00a0the ACA. &#8220;Let&#8217;s be honest: [The ACA&#8217;s] not bold. It&#8217;s not transformative,&#8221; she said. &#8220;I&#8217;m OK taking half a loaf if our message was &#8216;Here&#8217;s half, now let&#8217;s go get the rest.'&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>This statement was unlike anything she uttered during the presidential campaign and may represent a significant pivot for Warren. &#8220;This [post-election] shift seems likely to unmuzzle single-payer supporters who closeted themselves during the ACA era,&#8221;\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.pnhp.org\/news\/2016\/november\/health-reform-in-the-trump-era\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">observed<\/a>\u00a0Steffie Woolhandler and David Himmelstein, of PNHP, about Warren&#8217;s critique.<\/p>\n<p>Warren&#8217;s statement is one piece of evidence that because Clinton&#8217;s campaign is over, Democrats may feel more liberated to back single-payer. If a member of Congress cosponsored single-payer legislation during the campaign, it may have been perceived as undermining\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.latimes.com\/business\/hiltzik\/la-fi-mh-hillary-clinton-reveals-her-plan-obamacare-20160223-column.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Clinton&#8217;s plan<\/a>,\u00a0which was anti-single-payer and singularly focused on the ACA.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It was almost impossible to get cosponsors during the Democratic primary,&#8221; Day said.<\/p>\n<p>Clinton, however, is no longer a candidate and therefore\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/inthesetimes.com\/article\/19674\/hillary-clinton-democratic-party-neoliberal-trump\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">no longer the head<\/a>\u00a0of the Democratic Party. Who is the head of the party? It depends on who you ask. Some might say Sen. Chuck Schumer or Rep. Nancy Pelosi, the minority leaders of the two congressional bodies. But Sanders is the most popular politician in the country<a href=\"http:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/interactive\/2017\/03\/15\/fox-news-poll-315\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">,\u00a0according to<\/a>\u00a0a Fox News poll in March, and there is a sense among some in DC that Sanders is now the de facto leader of the party. Obviously, if this proves to be true, the post-Clinton era will be a boon for single-payer.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Finishing the Job<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Despite this progress, the fact remains that about half of the House Democrats have not cosponsored Medicare for All. Even in a blue state like Massachusetts, there are only three cosponsors out of nine house members.<\/p>\n<p>Rep. William Keating, for instance, from the state&#8217;s 9th\u00a0congressional district, which (like every district in the state)\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.dailykos.com\/story\/2017\/1\/30\/1627319\/-Daily-Kos-Elections-presents-the-2016-presidential-election-results-by-congressional-district\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">supported Clinton<\/a>\u00a0in 2016, is one of the holdouts. Data from the Center of Responsive Politics reports that he got more than $39,000 from\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.opensecrets.org\/politicians\/industries.php?cycle=2016&amp;cid=N00031933&amp;type=I\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">drug companies<\/a>\u00a0in 2016, which is $4,000 more than\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.opensecrets.org\/industries\/summary.php?ind=H04++\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">the average<\/a>\u00a0Democrat. But is this the only explanation? Keating&#8217;s Massachusetts colleague Rep. Michael Capuano received\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.opensecrets.org\/politicians\/industries.php?cycle=2016&amp;cid=N00000267&amp;type=I\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">$34,000<\/a>\u00a0from pharmaceutical companies and he is, and has been\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/capuano.house.gov\/issues\/mikeon_healthcare.shtml\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">in the past<\/a>, a cosponsor of HR 676. Another Massachusetts Congressman, Joseph Kennedy III, is another kind of animal. He received about $180,000 in\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.opensecrets.org\/politicians\/industries.php?cycle=2016&amp;cid=N00034044&amp;type=I\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">donations from Pharma<\/a>, more than\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.opensecrets.org\/industries\/summary.php?ind=H04++\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">four times<\/a>\u00a0the average House member in either party.<\/p>\n<p>Both Keating and Kennedy were contacted by Truthout and asked about HR 676. Keating said that &#8220;it seems increasingly clear Medicare for All is where we need to eventually end up,&#8221; but did not indicate he would cosponsor HR 676, noting that &#8220;there is little common ground with Republicans in this current political climate,&#8221; and he remains focused on protecting Obamacare.\u00a0A staffer for Kennedy could only confirm that the congressman is &#8220;still reviewing the legislation.&#8221; These are probably not the answers advocates want to hear. But the way things are going, those two members, along with all others who fail to cosponsor the Medicare for All bill, will be contacted by a lot more of their constituents in the coming months and years. And advocates committed to solving the health care crisis plan to keep calling until they get the right answer.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Health care activists outside the Massachusetts State House on the April 8th National Day of Action for Medicare for All. This was one of many events held across the country.\u00a0(Photo: Dave Madeloni) April 16,2017 The primary Medicare for All bill has more support in Congress now than it has ever&#8230; <a class=\"continue-reading-link\" href=\"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2017\/04\/16\/single-payer-health-care-seeing-record-support-congress-truthout-org\/\"> Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr; <\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4705"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4705"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4705\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4706,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4705\/revisions\/4706"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4705"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4705"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4705"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}