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Galindez writes: "We scored an important victory last Thursday night when John McCain turned thumbs down to his party's attempt to repeal Obamacare without a better replacement. The fight is not over though. Obamacare is not sustainable. The truth is private health insurance is not sustainable. It is time to join the rest of the world and guarantee healthcare as a right to everyone."

Senator Bernie Sanders speaking about prescription drug prices. (photo: Greg Nash)
Senator Bernie Sanders speaking about prescription drug prices. (photo: Greg Nash)


The Next Step in the Healthcare Fight

By Scott Galindez, Reader Supported News

01 August 17

 


Note: The video above is from the “Our Lives on the Line” rally this past Saturday in Des Moines, Iowa.

e scored an important victory last Thursday night when John McCain turned thumbs down to his party’s attempt to repeal Obamacare without a better replacement. The fight is not over though. Obamacare is not sustainable. The truth is private health insurance is not sustainable. It is time to join the rest of the world and guarantee healthcare as a right to everyone.

When Republican senator after Republican senator accused the Democrats of not offering a solution, they were lying. There is a bill in the House, H.R. 676, The Expanded & Improved Medicare for All Act.

According to the legislation’s summary, the system would cover all medically necessary services, including primary care, medically approved diet and nutrition services, inpatient care, outpatient care, emergency care, prescription drugs, durable medical equipment, hearing services, long term care, palliative care, podiatric care, mental health services, dentistry, oral surgery, eye care, chiropractic, and substance abuse treatment. Patients have their choice of physicians, providers, hospitals, clinics, and practices. There are no co-pays or deductibles allowed under this act. It would also cover all prescription drugs. That’s right, no co-pays, no deductibles, and no prescription drug costs. Higher taxes would replace premiums, so we do not promise free healthcare.

Senator Bernie Sanders will soon be proposing legislation in the Senate. In a letter to supporters, he said: “Let me be clear. This will be an enormously challenging and prolonged struggle and one which will require the efforts of tens of millions of Americans in every state in this country. It will, in fact, need a political revolution in which the American people participate in the political process in a way that we have not seen in the recent history of our democracy.

“To pass a Medicare-for-all, single payer system we will be taking on the most powerful special interests in the country: Wall Street, the insurance companies, the drug companies, the corporate media, the Republican Party and the establishment wing of the Democratic Party. In opposition to our efforts, there will be a never-ending barrage of TV ads, editorials, political attacks and lies.

“If we are going to be successful in this struggle, we have got to be smart – very smart. Not only do we need strong legislation (which I will be offering shortly and an outline of which I will be sending to you), but we need an unprecedented organizing and educational campaign.”

Of course in this Congress, there is little hope of single payer passing. It is, however, an issue on which Democrats could ride back to power. It is still true that many Americans don’t understand the benefits of single payer, so it will take a massive movement in this country to win hearts and minds.

We must educate people, including employers, on the advantages of a single payer system. The rising cost of healthcare coverage is a burden on both management and labor. Imagine what it would be like if employers no longer had to pay for health insurance, and if Labor didn’t have to negotiate for healthcare coverage in its contracts. Employers could hire more people at higher wages, and employees wouldn’t be stuck with jobs they didn’t like just to keep their healthcare benefits.

The only losers will be the health insurance industry. What do they really provide us? They are the death panels that Republicans tried to scare us with before Obamacare passed. We don’t need AETNA or Humana or any of them to continue denying people coverage in order to protect their bottom line, profit.

Improved Medicare for All should be the signature issue for Democrats if they hope to reverse the electoral gains of the GOP. Americans understand that Obamacare needs to be replaced. Here in Iowa, we formed a task force in our County Democratic Party and will be holding a community meeting in Des Moines on August 12th at 2 pm central time. Our Revolution president Nina Turner will participating in the meeting. We will stream it on RSN and on Uphill Media. We are a long way from making healthcare available to everyone as a right, and it will take a lot of work, but it is a struggle we must engage in. Millions of lives depend on us succeeding.



Scott Galindez attended Syracuse University, where he first became politically active. The writings of El Salvador's slain archbishop Oscar Romero and the on-campus South Africa divestment movement converted him from a Reagan supporter to an activist for Peace and Justice. Over the years he has been influenced by the likes of Philip Berrigan, William Thomas, Mitch Snyder, Don White, Lisa Fithian, and Paul Wellstone. Scott met Marc Ash while organizing counterinaugural events after George W. Bush's first stolen election. Scott moved to Des Moines in 2015 to cover the Iowa Caucus.

Reader Supported News is the Publication of Origin for this work. Permission to republish is freely granted with credit and a link back to Reader Supported News.

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