Public Option
Commentary
Joe Biden is no moderate, especially on healthcare
After months of campaigning, Joe Biden has emerged as the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. Last week, he finally secured the endorsement of his chief rival, Sen. Bernie Sanders. Biden succeeded by positioning himself as a moderate alternative to Sanders and other Democratic candidates. But Biden’s agenda is anything but moderate. Just look at his healthcare ...
Sally C. Pipes
April 20, 2020
Commentary
Biden and Sanders would both end private health insurance, despite what Biden claims
Self-described socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who says he will launch a political revolution if elected president in November, has made his radical “Medicare-for-all” proposal the centerpiece of his campaign. Former Vice President Joe Biden, who is challenging Sanders for the Democratic presidential nomination, argues correctly that “Medicare-for-all” is unaffordable. Biden wants ...
Sally C. Pipes
March 9, 2020
Blog
Single-Payer Poll Watch Update: Sanders Rises, As Average Support Falls, Confusion Increases for Single-Payer Health Care
One would think that the rise of Senator Bernie Sanders (D-VT) to the top of the Democrat presidential nomination list equals growing enthusiasm for the Medicare for All plan he champions. But Sanders’ rise to frontrunner status isn’t doing much to boost the lukewarm attitudes voters give a single-payer health ...
Evan Harris
February 27, 2020
Commentary
Mike Bloomberg has a lot of bad ideas for health care
It took Mike Bloomberg three months and $400 million, but he finally qualified for a Democratic debate. The former New York mayor earned his place on stage in Las Vegas on Feb. 19 after surging to second place in the polls, just behind Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. But like many wealthy hopefuls ...
Sally C. Pipes
February 24, 2020
Commentary
Democratic presidential candidates would all end private health insurance eventually
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and his “Medicare-for-all” plan emerged victorious in New Hampshire’s presidential primary. Sanders captured more than one-fourth of voters in the Democratic primary, about 40 percent of whom said health care was the issue that mattered most when choosing a candidate. Close on his heels are the Democratic moderates: ...
Sally C. Pipes
February 18, 2020
Commentary
The Public Option: Medicare For All, Part One
The chaotic Iowa Caucus on February 3 had one clear winner—government-run health care. According to exit polls, nearly six in 10 Democratic caucus voters support eliminating private insurance in favor of a single-payer system. A government takeover of the health insurance system is surprisingly popular outside Iowa as well. A recent Kaiser ...
Sally C. Pipes
February 18, 2020
Blog
Bankruptcy Deadline May Not Save PG&E from State Takeover
Reeling from multiple massive state wildfires that its actions likely triggered, Pacific Gas & Electric, or PG&E, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy this time last year. The investor-owned utility faces a June 30, 2020 deadline to come up with a plan to come out of bankruptcy, address the estimated $25 ...
Evan Harris
February 12, 2020
Commentary
Sally Pipes in WSJ: Medicare for All Could Mean Doctors for None
Professional groups representing doctors are buying into Democratic plans to remake health care—and thereby acting against the interests of their members. The American College of Physicians, the second-largest organization of U.S. doctors, recently came out in support of either a public option or single payer. At the American Medical Association’s ...
Sally C. Pipes
February 10, 2020
Blog
Single-Payer Poll Watch: Single-Payer Support and Opposition Even, Iowa Caucusgoers Rate Health Care Top Issue
One of the first national health care polls of 2020 shows the continued lukewarm support for a national single-payer health care plan. Adding the January 2020 Kaiser survey to the Pacific Research Institute (PRI) Single-Payer Poll Watch brings the average support and opposition for single-payer health care to almost dead ...
Evan Harris
February 5, 2020
Blog
National School Choice Week Celebrates All Types of Education Choice
This week is National School Choice Week and it is important to remember that education choice includes not just private, charter, and traditional public options, but also homeschooling options as well. My upcoming book, co-authored with the amazing Mia Giordano, tells the story of Mia’s incredible educational journey. Because of ...
Lance Izumi
January 29, 2020
Joe Biden is no moderate, especially on healthcare
After months of campaigning, Joe Biden has emerged as the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. Last week, he finally secured the endorsement of his chief rival, Sen. Bernie Sanders. Biden succeeded by positioning himself as a moderate alternative to Sanders and other Democratic candidates. But Biden’s agenda is anything but moderate. Just look at his healthcare ...
Biden and Sanders would both end private health insurance, despite what Biden claims
Self-described socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who says he will launch a political revolution if elected president in November, has made his radical “Medicare-for-all” proposal the centerpiece of his campaign. Former Vice President Joe Biden, who is challenging Sanders for the Democratic presidential nomination, argues correctly that “Medicare-for-all” is unaffordable. Biden wants ...
Single-Payer Poll Watch Update: Sanders Rises, As Average Support Falls, Confusion Increases for Single-Payer Health Care
One would think that the rise of Senator Bernie Sanders (D-VT) to the top of the Democrat presidential nomination list equals growing enthusiasm for the Medicare for All plan he champions. But Sanders’ rise to frontrunner status isn’t doing much to boost the lukewarm attitudes voters give a single-payer health ...
Mike Bloomberg has a lot of bad ideas for health care
It took Mike Bloomberg three months and $400 million, but he finally qualified for a Democratic debate. The former New York mayor earned his place on stage in Las Vegas on Feb. 19 after surging to second place in the polls, just behind Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. But like many wealthy hopefuls ...
Democratic presidential candidates would all end private health insurance eventually
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and his “Medicare-for-all” plan emerged victorious in New Hampshire’s presidential primary. Sanders captured more than one-fourth of voters in the Democratic primary, about 40 percent of whom said health care was the issue that mattered most when choosing a candidate. Close on his heels are the Democratic moderates: ...
The Public Option: Medicare For All, Part One
The chaotic Iowa Caucus on February 3 had one clear winner—government-run health care. According to exit polls, nearly six in 10 Democratic caucus voters support eliminating private insurance in favor of a single-payer system. A government takeover of the health insurance system is surprisingly popular outside Iowa as well. A recent Kaiser ...
Bankruptcy Deadline May Not Save PG&E from State Takeover
Reeling from multiple massive state wildfires that its actions likely triggered, Pacific Gas & Electric, or PG&E, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy this time last year. The investor-owned utility faces a June 30, 2020 deadline to come up with a plan to come out of bankruptcy, address the estimated $25 ...
Sally Pipes in WSJ: Medicare for All Could Mean Doctors for None
Professional groups representing doctors are buying into Democratic plans to remake health care—and thereby acting against the interests of their members. The American College of Physicians, the second-largest organization of U.S. doctors, recently came out in support of either a public option or single payer. At the American Medical Association’s ...
Single-Payer Poll Watch: Single-Payer Support and Opposition Even, Iowa Caucusgoers Rate Health Care Top Issue
One of the first national health care polls of 2020 shows the continued lukewarm support for a national single-payer health care plan. Adding the January 2020 Kaiser survey to the Pacific Research Institute (PRI) Single-Payer Poll Watch brings the average support and opposition for single-payer health care to almost dead ...
National School Choice Week Celebrates All Types of Education Choice
This week is National School Choice Week and it is important to remember that education choice includes not just private, charter, and traditional public options, but also homeschooling options as well. My upcoming book, co-authored with the amazing Mia Giordano, tells the story of Mia’s incredible educational journey. Because of ...