Progressives try to have it both ways on Medicare for All
Embracing a big step toward pure Medicare for All could also hand a victory to progressives who have long pushed for legislative action — if they can settle for something less than the litmus test they set up.
Key points
- The News Progressive Democrats are trying a tricky feat as their party takes power: endorsing Medicare for All while quietly pushing for smaller steps toward it.
- “It’s the perfect way for us to get ready for the next trifecta if we pass those three bills, and then if we mark up the entire Medicare for All bill,” said Rep.
- Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Terri Sewell, D-Ala., laid out a menu of options that included Medicare for All alongside many other proposals.
Democrats are united in attributing their electoral triumph in part to voter backlash against GOP healthcare moves — and this year, even purple-district candidates won while backing Medicare for All.
Additional details
- Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., the lead sponsor of the House’s Medicare for All bill.
- Kim Schrier, D-Wash., said that she wants both of those priorities to advance, but cautioned that “we still have the same president in the White House.” The View From The Senate Across the Capitol, Sen.
- Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., is pushing to use reconciliation to immediately advance his bill to lower the Medicare eligibility age to 55, add dental, vision and hearing coverage to the federal health insurance program for seniors, and ensure universal coverage for children through age 19.
- Quite a few in the caucus want the party to focus on the underlying drivers of healthcare costs before considering a system where taxpayers pay for all healthcare.
- An incoming cohort of progressives want to push their party to vote on the full government-run healthcare package now.
How this summary was made: extractive summary — built from the sources' own reporting. It is drawn only from the reporting of the sources listed below — read the originals for full detail. How we summarize →
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