Democratic Leaders Walk Tightrope To Avoid Political Fallout As ‘Medicare For All’ Plan Invigorates Progressives
Democratic leaders, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, try to keep a leash on progressives to get the party to unite behind incremental changes to the existing health law. But after grabbing headlines and attention this week with their "Medicare for All" proposed legislation, the left wing of the party is not on board with being contained.
Politico:
Establishment Dems Give Medicare-For-All The Brush Off
House Democratic leaders gave their liberal lawmakers what they wanted on health care. Now they’re fighting to keep “Medicare for All“ from devouring the party. Progressives emboldened by this week's bill rollout are vowing to turn up the pressure on fellow Democrats to back the single-payer blueprint and build momentum ahead of the 2020 election. That’s already creating headaches for top Democrats who fear the political blowback of the plan’s most liberal elements, including abortion funding and the elimination of most private health insurance. (Cancryn, 2/28)
The Hill:
Pelosi On Single-Payer Health Care: 'How Do You Pay For That?'
Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) expresses some skepticism about single-payer health insurance in a new interview, asking how the trillions of dollars in new spending would be paid for. “That is, administratively, the simplest thing to do, but to convert to it? Thirty trillion dollars. Now, how do you pay for that?” Pelosi said of single-payer in an interview with Rolling Stone. (Sullivan, 2/28)
The Hill:
Key Dem Chairman Voices Skepticism On 'Medicare For All' Bill
House Budget Committee Chairman John Yarmuth (D-Ky.) is expressing skepticism about a new "Medicare for all" bill introduced this week, although he has supported similar measures in the past. Yarmuth, who has supported Medicare for all bills since arriving in the House in 2006, says a new version introduced this week by Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) goes far beyond what he considers to be Medicare for all. (Hellmann, 2/28)
Kaiser Health News:
Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ ‘Medicare-For-All’ Debate: Who’s Going To Pay
House Democrats, led by Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), have formally introduced their “Medicare-for-all” legislation. The bill, which would ensure coverage for almost every medical service most people need, did not come with any suggestions for financing. But it will likely reflect the far-left end of the Democratic debate in progress. (2/28)
Meanwhile, a man shares his experience with another country's socialized medicine —
The Washington Post:
Taiwan Hospital: American Student With No Health Insurance Gets Full Treatment For $80
The Facebook post was illustrated with an image of an IV. “Went to the ER in Taiwan,” it began. Kevin Bozeat, a 25-year-old student, wrote about coming down with severe gastrointestinal symptoms while studying in Taiwan: stomach cramps, bouts of vomiting that would not abate and perhaps worst of all, he couldn’t keep any fluids down. Around 3 a.m., he decided it was time to go to the hospital for treatment, not knowing what to expect having never been to a hospital in Taiwan — a country that has a national health care system, or as Bozeat wrote, “socialized medicine.” (Rosenberg, 2/28)
