The debate over fixing the national health care system is proving to be a key sticking point in this election cycle.
As the 24 Democratic candidates jock for the position, they are zeroing in on being the ones who have the best grasp on Medicare for all. The one problem is, according to the author of the bill, none of them have a keen understanding of the bill.
The term “Medicare for All” precisely means cutting out private insurance company and employers based health care and transitioning into a single payer system much like the model used in Europe.
One of the features of this groundbreaking bill that often gets misconstrued is the issue of whether or not Americans who like the plan they are currently on would be allowed to keep their private coverage under Medicare for All.
Sen. Kamala Harris has given two different answers on the same network, to the same anchor.
Originally, when CNN’s Jake Tapper posed the question of whether the California senator would eliminate private coverage, Harris said she would. “Let’s eliminate all that let’s get rid of private insurance.”
However, in a recent sit-down interview with Tapper, Harris tried to backtrack her position on the issue saying that is not what she meant.
“Roll the tape please what I meant to say was let’s get rid of all of the bureaucracy.” She claims she never meant we should get rid of private insurance.
Harris is not the only candidate that has been backpedaling on this issue. Sen. Cory Booker gave his support for Medicare for All with a caveat. He wants people to have the option of keeping their private insurance.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal, who wrote the bill with Sen. Bernie Sanders, is frustrated at the mix massaging that is being sent by candidates to their potential supporters. She has offered to brief each candidate on the crux of her bill.
“We want to make sure we bring the best information that’s out there to the presidential candidates, so they know how to talk about this.”
