One of the most glaring signs that the Democratic Party has shifted even farther leftward since the 2016 election is in the way most Democratic candidates are embracing Senator Bernie Sanders's single-payer health care plan, which he calls "Medicare for All."
As a candidate pushing this idea in 2016, Sanders was criticized by the Democratic Party establishment for proposing universal health care, telling voters it was politically unrealistic and a non-starter. Hillary Clinton and congressional Democrats were proposing minor tweaks to Obamacare rather than overhauling the entire health care system.
As a candidate pushing this idea in 2016, Sanders was criticized by the Democratic Party establishment for proposing universal health care, telling voters it was politically unrealistic and a non-starter. Hillary Clinton and congressional Democrats were proposing minor tweaks to Obamacare rather than overhauling the entire health care system.
But the hard lurch to the left by Democrats, which has seen dozens of Sanders-boosters now running for office, has made the "Medicare for All" plan more acceptable to a majority of Democrats. In fact, most of the major candidates being mentioned in 2020 have come out in favor of it.
The Hill:
Democrats acknowledge the embrace of single-payer is part of a broader leftward shift for their party. But they say the experience of trying to make private markets work in ObamaCare – a system that Republicans have opposed at every turn – has changed their perspective on the likelihood of achieving universal coverage.
"I think Bernie Sanders has definitely laid out a vision and created a movement toward Medicare for all, and no doubt that has been a big factor," said Topher Spiro, vice president for health policy at CAP.
Part of the need for the next step, he said, is "it's become clear we're not going to get any cooperation from Republicans in terms of making the current system work optimally, and there's a lot of frustration there."
The Medicare Extra plan is a way to take the "final step" to universal coverage after ObamaCare,
(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...
