Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
As 'Medicare For All' Gains Popularity, Health Industry Quietly Assembles Small Army Of Lobbyists To Try To Kill It
Even before Democrats finish drafting bills to create a single-payer health care system, the health care and insurance industries have assembled a small army of lobbyists to kill 鈥淢edicare for all,鈥 an idea that is mocked publicly but is being greeted privately with increasing seriousness. Doctors, hospitals, drug companies and insurers are intent on strangling Medicare for all before it advances from an aspirational slogan to a legislative agenda item. They have hired a top lieutenant in Hillary Clinton鈥檚 2016 presidential campaign to spearhead the effort. And their tactics will show Democrats what they are up against as the party drifts to the left on health care. (Pear, 2/23)
"Medicare-for-all" can mean different things to different people. For some, it's a single government-run health insurance plan for the whole country. To others, it's giving consumers a choice to buy into Medicare or keep their private insurance. But whatever the form, the proposals are built on the premise that health insurance should be a guaranteed right. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 2/22)
Bernie Sanders is back, but one of his signature policies never left. In 2015, he introduced Medicare-for-all to many Democrats for the first time. Since Sanders' first run for president, that type of single-payer health care system has become a mainstream Democratic proposal. Last week, Sanders launched his second presidential campaign, amid a field of presidential candidates who are trying to figure out how to position themselves around the policy. (Kurtzleben, 2/25)
Democrats say they broadly agree about addressing problems like climate change, health care, infrastructure and immigration. Where they differ is the scale of the solution. ... Health care is a key example. At the request of the CPC, [House Budget Committee Chairman Rep. John] Yarmuth has agreed to hold hearings on Medicare for all in the spring. He is also planning hearings on the economic cost of climate change. Even if the 2020 budget doesn鈥檛 include Medicare for all in its entirety, progressives want it to carve out a path forward. (Elis, 2/24)
