‘Medicare For All’ Could Toss Wrench In Senate Democrats’ Plan To Use Midterm Playbook That Secured The House
Senate Democratic candidates want to replicate the success of the midterm elections, where House candidates used protecting the health law as a winning topic. But the push toward a more progressive plan like "Medicare for All" could undermine that strategy. Meanwhile, opponents of a Medicare buy-in option say such a plan would hurt rural hospitals.
The Hill:
'Medicare For All' Complicates Democrats' Pitch To Retake Senate
The divide over health care among Democratic presidential candidates is raising fears the party might turn an issue that was a key winner in the House midterms into a liability in next year's Senate races. Democratic Senate candidates have been planning to borrow heavily from the playbook used by House Democrats in 2018, when the party won back the chamber in large part because of a pledge to protect ObamaCare against Republican attempts to kill the 2010 law. (Hellmann, 8/8)
Modern Healthcare:
Medicare Buy-In Would Hurt Rural Hospitals, Study Says
Opponents of the public option have funded an analysis that warns more rural hospitals may close if Americans leave commercial plans for Medicare. With the focus on rural hospitals, the Partnership for America's Health Care Future brings a sensitive issue for politicians into its fight against a Medicare buy-in. The policy has gone mainstream among Democratic presidential candidates and many Democratic lawmakers. (Luthi, 8/7)
Previous KHN coverage: Doctors Argue Plans To Remedy Surprise Medical Bills Will ‘Shred’ The Safety Net
And in other news —
The CT Mirror:
Health Insurers Ramp Up Lobbying Battle Against Medicare-For-All
Nearly every Democratic candidate for the White House, from the most progressive to the most conservative, are calling for changes to the nation’s health care system that would adversely impact Connecticut’s health insurers – and that industry is hitting back. Joining forces with their longtime foe, the pharmaceutical industry, and with some of the biggest names in the health care industry, including the American Medical Association and the Federation of American Hospitals, the nation’s health insurers have joined a coalition that is fighting Medicare-for-all proposals and other Democratic plans to alter the nation’s health care. (Radelat, 8/7)
Boston Globe:
N.H. Democrats Say They Want A Candidate Who Favors Medicare For All, Suffolk/Globe Poll Finds
More than half of New Hampshire Democratic primary voters say it is very important that their party nominate a candidate who supports Medicare for All, according to a new Suffolk University/Boston Globe poll released Tuesday. Fifty-six percent of respondents said Democrats should nominate someone who supports Medicare for All, and 60 percent said they personally supported the policy (compared with to 22 percent who said they were opposed to the idea). (Prignano, 8/6)
