Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Costs Will Most Likely Take Center Stage At Second Hearing For 'Medicare For All'
Medicare for All is back in Congress for a second committee hearing just two weeks after lawmakers on the House Rules Committee broke new ground with theirs. But on Wednesday, the House Budget Committee will take its own approach to the issue that has gained huge momentum in the last few months, focusing on recent Congressional Budget Office analysis for how a single payer design could look in the U.S. (Luthi, 5/21)
The 鈥淢edicare for All鈥 push is hitting serious obstacles in the U.S. House in the face of resistance from Democratic leaders concerned that replacing the private insurance system would generate backlash from voters who like their coverage. The House Budget Committee is holding a hearing on Wednesday to explore 鈥渄esign components and considerations for establishing a single-payer health care system,鈥 which could serve as a preliminary step toward overhauling how Americans get health insurance coverage. (Kapur, 5/22)
Meanwhile, voters continue to say health care is top of mind for them 鈥
Health care is the top issue for Americans, according to a new poll聽from RealClear Opinion Research. The importance of the issue crossed gender, age and party lines, results show. Forty-five percent of Democrats, 30 percent of Republicans and 31 percent of independents chose health care as their top issue from six options, including the economy, education, environment, foreign policy and immigration. Sixty-two percent of respondents ranked health care as either their top or number two issue. (Budryk, 5/21)