That Sound You Hear is the Stampede of Democratic Hopefuls
Running Away from National Health Insurance
National health insurance was MIA in the first Democratic debate. Over two nights 18 of the 20 candidates declined to get behind it. Make that 19 as one, Kamala Harris, seeing which way she thought the wind was blowing, walked back her support the next day. Their excuse: 158 million Americans who get their health insurance at work and are allegedly invested in corporate healthcare. And what a great deal they’re getting — premiums up 55% in the last decade, rising twice as fast as wages and three times as fast as inflation. Workers forced to give up 10 to 12% of their pay to cover their health insurance premiums and 85% paying deductibles as high as $2,000. What’s not to like? Thanks to corporate media the lies and misstatements of the corporate health industry get widespread coverage. More than one-half of Americans believe they will still have to pay premiums, deductibles, and copays under a national health plan. Thanks to the hundreds of millions of dollars the healthcare lobby showers on Congress, many of them sing from the same hymnal. We make the case for national health insurance with every sector of the economy paying their fair share: wealthy individuals and corporations, the finance industry, and taxpayers. It’s time for America to join the rest of the world and deliver healthcare to anyone who needs it.
