{"id":45309,"date":"2025-11-26T12:23:17","date_gmt":"2025-11-26T20:23:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=45309"},"modified":"2025-11-26T12:23:18","modified_gmt":"2025-11-26T20:23:18","slug":"medicare-for-all-backers-argue-its-a-better-solution-than-whatever-trump-is-cooking-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2025\/11\/26\/medicare-for-all-backers-argue-its-a-better-solution-than-whatever-trump-is-cooking-up\/","title":{"rendered":"Medicare for All Backers Argue It\u2019s a Better Solution Than Whatever Trump Is Cooking Up"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Medicare<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Members of National Nurses United rally with lawmakers to show their support for the Medicare For All Act on Capitol Hill on April 29, 2025 in Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0(Photo: Chip Somodevilla\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cRepublicans have a million ideas regarding healthcare. Except one,\u201d said Sen. Bernie Sanders. \u201cThey will never acknowledge that healthcare is a human right\u2014to be guaranteed to ALL.\u201d<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Jessica Corbett<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nov 25, 2025 (CommonDreams.org)<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As President Donald Trump<\/a> postpones<\/a> unveiling his supposed plan to tackle soaring US healthcare<\/a> costs\u2014reportedly<\/a> after pushback from congressional Republicans\u2014Medicare for All advocates have renewed calls for shifting to a single-payer<\/a> system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cRepublicans<\/a> have a million ideas regarding healthcare. Except one,\u201d Sen. Bernie Sanders<\/a> (I-Vt.), who caucuses with Democrats, said<\/a> on social media<\/a> Monday afternoon. \u201cThey will never acknowledge that healthcare is a human right\u2014to be guaranteed to ALL.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

RECOMMENDED…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Sen.<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Trump Healthcare Payment Proposal Sparks Fresh Medicare for All Demands to Fix \u2018Broken\u2019 Healthcare System<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Congressional<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

As Dr. Oz Helps Prove \u2018There Is No Republican Health Care Plan,\u2019 Democrats Have Solution Most Refuse to Embrace: Medicare for All<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The union National Nurses United also called for Medicare for All<\/a> on Monday, pointing to a recent West Health\/Gallup poll<\/a> that found 47% of US adults are worried they won\u2019t be able to afford healthcare next year, the highest level since they began tracking in 2021.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe urgency around this is real,\u201d West Health president Timothy Lash\u00a0told<\/a>\u00a0NBC News<\/em>. \u201cWhen you look at the economic strain that is on families right now, even if healthcare prices didn\u2019t rise, the costs are rising elsewhere, which only exacerbates the problem.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/x.com\/NationalNurses\/status\/1993118485006725496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1993118485006725496%7Ctwgr%5Ec23f54b1750a728e9c692dbf7437bc2937ff4e52%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.commondreams.org%2Fnews%2Fmedicare-for-all-act-2025<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over objections from progressives<\/a>, including Sanders, a small group of Senate Democrats earlier this month agreed<\/a> to help GOP<\/a> lawmakers end the longest federal government shutdown in US history in exchange for just the promise of a mid-December vote on extending Affordable Care Act<\/a> (ACA) subsidies to help over 20 million Americans who face skyrocketing premiums.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Citing unnamed White House<\/a> officials, MS NOW <\/em>reported<\/a> Sunday that Trump was set to introduce the Healthcare Price Cuts Act to combat what the sources called \u201csurprise premium hikes\u201d as soon as Monday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe plan would also eliminate \u2018zero-premium\u2019 subsidies currently offered under the ACA, intending to stop \u2018ghost beneficiaries,\u2019 a frequent Republican concern about alleged fraudulent policy recipients, by requiring a small minimum payment as a means to verify eligibility to receive benefits,\u201d according to the outlet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe nascent plan also features a deposit program that would incentivize lower-premium options on the ACA exchange,\u201d MS NOW<\/em> continued. \u201cFor individuals who downgrade coverage, the difference in coverage costs would be distributed to a \u2018Health Savings Account\u2019 provided with taxpayer dollars.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, as Politico<\/em> detailed<\/a> Monday, also citing unnamed sources, \u201cTrump\u2019s healthcare plan<\/a> is in limbo after pushback from Republicans<\/a> who were caught off guard by the president\u2019s forthcoming proposal\u2014questioning, in particular, whether it would include additional abortion<\/a> restrictions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As parts of Trump\u2019s proposal continued to leak in the absence of its formal introduction, the American Prospect<\/em>\u2018s Ryan Cooper and David Dayen wrote<\/a> Tuesday that \u201call told, there\u2019s a good chance that Democrats will accept this offer, or something like it, as the best they\u2019re likely to get for the time being.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf they are ever in power again, they can fix the ACA permanently, and avoid the danger of subsidies expiring (as the\u00a0Prospect<\/em>\u00a0advocated<\/a>\u00a0back in 2021). But it\u2019s quite revealing as to the total bankruptcy of the\u00a0Republican Party<\/a>\u00a0when it comes to healthcare policy,\u201d the duo added. \u201cThe GOP will flinch from more than doubling health insurance premiums\u2014at least if middle-class people and up are the most affected\u2014but only if they can also make the insurance worse, and make poor people pay more.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/x.com\/HalSinger\/status\/1993099949534236892?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1993099949534236892%7Ctwgr%5Ec23f54b1750a728e9c692dbf7437bc2937ff4e52%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.commondreams.org%2Fnews%2Fmedicare-for-all-act-2025<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last week, in a pair of op-eds<\/a> and a letter<\/a> to Democratic lawmakers, Sanders argued that \u201cat a time when the Republicans have been forced to finally talk about the healthcare crisis facing our country, it is essential that the Democratic Caucus unify behind a set of commonsense policies that will make healthcare more affordable and accessible.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He called for not only extending the ACA tax credits, but also repealing Trump and congressional Republicans\u2019 $1 trillion in cuts to the ACA and Medicaid<\/a>; expanding Medicare<\/a> to cover dental, vision, and hearing; cutting prescription drug costs by requiring pharmaceutical companies to charge no more for medications in the United States<\/a> than they do in Europe or Canada; investing in expanding primary healthcare; and banning stock buybacks<\/a> and dividends, and restricting CEO compensation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although Medicare<\/a> for All lacks majority support in the Democratic Caucus, Sanders\u2014the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions\u2014also emphasized his belief that it remains the ideal long-term solution. He reintroduced<\/a> the Medicare for All Act in April with Democratic Reps. Pramila Jayapal<\/a> (Wash.) and Debbie Dingell (Mich.).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other single-payer advocates have also seized on current concerns and debates about the ACA. In a column for Truthdig<\/em> last Thursday, Conor Lynch wrote<\/a> that \u201cwith Republicans spotlighting the greed, corruption<\/a>, and inefficiency of US healthcare, progressive Democrats have an opening to take Medicare for All off the back burner and renew the push for a comprehensive overhaul.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe fact that Republicans are calling out insurance companies for their profiteering shows how much the national mood has changed since the passage of the ACA,\u201d he continued. \u201cWith Republicans unable to offer anything but a return to an intolerable status quo ante, Democrats should make the case for moving beyond the broken status quo.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The previous week, CJ Mikkelsen, a retired firefighter and paramedic now leading a small nonprofit in Michigan, made the case<\/a> in the Midland Dai<\/em>ly News<\/em> that \u201cwe need a system like every other country in the developed world has.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mikkelsen shared some of his and his wife\u2019s health struggles and stressed the society-wide benefits: \u201cMedicare for All would mean that everyone is covered for everything at all times. No more losing coverage because you\u2019ve lost your job, want to go back to school, or are starting your own business. The last thing I want you to know about Medicare for All, and pay attention here\u2014IT\u2019S CHEAPER THAN WHAT WE\u2019RE DOING NOW.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jessica Corbett<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jessica Corbett is a senior editor and staff writer for Common Dreams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Full Bio ><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Members of National Nurses United rally with lawmakers to show their support for the Medicare For All Act on Capitol Hill on April 29, 2025 in Washington, D.C. \u00a0(Photo: Chip Somodevilla\/Getty Images) \u201cRepublicans have a million ideas regarding healthcare. Except one,\u201d said Sen. Bernie Sanders. \u201cThey will never acknowledge that… Continue reading → <\/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":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45309"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45309"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45309\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":45310,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45309\/revisions\/45310"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45309"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45309"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45309"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}