‘Our system is in dire straits’: progressive Democrats hold Medicare for All hearing | US healthcare
The Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) held a meeting. shadow hearing Wednesday on Medicare for All, led by Pramila Jayapal and Debbie Dingell.
The hearing goes like this more than half House Democratic caucus co-sponsors Medicare for All legislation and Senator Andy Kim introduced Republicans made deep cuts to health care in the One Big, Beautiful Bill, as they introduced legislation on Tuesday that would enroll all children in Medicare by age 26. almost $1 billion on Medicaid cuts and to give permission Affordable Care Act subsidies are expiring.
“I’m going to get this to the finish line before I die, and I don’t plan on dying anytime soon. But I want to get this done,” Dingell said in her opening statement, referencing her father-in-law, John D Dingell Sr., and her late husband, John Dingell, who drafted the universal health care legislation that underpinned Medicare. frequently promoted Medicare for All legislation in his decades-long career in Congress.
“We spend twice as much per capita on health care than other countries with systems like Medicare for All, and we still have 28 million uninsured Americans and an increase in the number of uninsured people since 2023,” he said.
“We face worse outcomes, including lower life expectancy and higher infant mortality rates. The only people who benefit are the corporations that profit while Americans struggle.”
National Nurses United, the largest nurses union in the United States, testified in support of Medicare for All, along with Public Citizen, Physicians for a National Health Plan, People’s Action Institute and other supporters of the policy.
A. to work Yale epidemiologists found in 2020 that Medicare for All would save about 68,000 lives per year and reduce U.S. health care spending by about 13% (about $450 billion).
National Health Plan Physicians president Dr. In his testimony at the hearing, Diljeet K Singh said, “I am not exaggerating when I say that our healthcare system is in a difficult situation. Every day in my clinic, I see patients struggling with the cost of healthcare.” “At least 35 cents of every healthcare dollar is spent not on patient care but on insurance administration and corporate profit.”
In her testimony, Jamie Brown RN, president of National Nurses United, explained that healthcare employers’ prioritization of profit over healthcare has led to understaffing of units and high patient loads that lead to poorer health outcomes for patients.
“The only way to transform our system for the better is to ensure that the profit motive is completely removed from the equation,” Brown said.
Centre-left Projector Institute persistently Democrats will refrain from supporting Medicare for All, citing a June decision questionnaire A majority or majority supporting single-payer healthcare has been identified by Tavern Research. However, a majority of 70% of survey respondents preferred to keep their current health insurance; however, the question did not account for the fact that 45% of survey respondents already received their insurance through Medicare or Medicaid.
Think tank backs Health Services Alliance planHe endorses a gradually expanding government role in health care, such as negotiating drug prices and breaking monopolies.
Separately questionnaire In the survey conducted by Medicare for All Pac in November, 52% of respondents favored a Democratic candidate supporting the policy; More than 45% supported a Republican candidate who supported standard Republican policy on health care. The poll found that Democratic voters support a universal healthcare policy at 90 percent.
“Medicare for All remains our number one priority for the Progressive caucus to reform our healthcare system, and we believe it should be the number one priority for our Democratic party and our country,” Congressman Greg Casar said at the hearing.
He cited the multimillion-dollar salaries of healthcare CEOs across the industry and the millions of dollars healthcare organizations spend on lobbying in response to common criticism from Republicans about the costs of Medicare for All.
“Health care shouldn’t be a privilege determined by your job, income, or zip code. But millions of Americans continue to delay or forgo care because they can’t afford it,” said Congressman Jesús “Chuy” García.
Congresswoman Adelita Grijalva described her family growing up near a superfund site, where family members died of cancer and required a hysterectomy at an early age.
“We have to address the underlying causes of this disease in the system, not just treat the symptoms,” he said. “The symptoms of our current health care system are the highest out-of-pocket expenses for people in any high-income country, the highest medical bankruptcies, the highest national spending ever, worse health outcomes, delayed and denied care, higher preventable deaths, and lower life expectancies. The consequences are especially dire for low-income people, people of color, and people living in rural communities.”
Congresswoman Melanie Stansbury cited the high cost of the Trump administration’s war against Iran, citing the significant amount of money spent on weapons and the US military, in contrast to criticism of the costs of universal healthcare. $37.5 billion so far.
“There is no one who has to die because they are afraid to go to the emergency room. There is no one in this country who has to live in a rural, tribal community and cannot access basic care in their own community,” Stansbury said. “This is a moral turpitude. Health care is a human right.”
Concluding the hearing, Jayapal emphasized that healthcare for all is a cultural shift that will improve the lives of millions of Americans.
“I think this is the moment when the current system collapses under the weight of for-profit insurance companies and all the organizations that would benefit from it,” he said. “It will be a struggle to get there. But I believe other parties are with us and are looking for a transformative system where everyone is in, no one is out, and health care is truly a human right.”
