Joe Biden's public option healthcare plan would leave just under 3% of Americans uninsured. This is unacceptable.
Biden's plan is a vast improvement on what many Republicans see as an ideal health insurance plan and it is a massive improvement over the 27.5 million people currently uninsured. His plan would allow Americans who like the health insurance they receive from their employer to keep it, and everyone else could go on the public option. Individuals in non-Medicaid expansion states could enroll in this public option for free. However, 3% of America is still 10 million people. This is dangerous. According to an article in Jacobin, one unnecessary death occurs per every 830 uninsured people annually. This means that in 10 years of Biden's plan 125,000 people would die from being uninsured.
By avoiding the elimination of private insurance all together, Biden fails to provide the consistency and reliability of a single-payer option. This means families will face confusion and instability if they lose their job because it will also result in the loss of the accompanying insurance plan.
Biden shied away from Medicare for All because of public opinion.
While 56% of Americans believe that there should be Medicare for All Americans, this support dwindles to 37% when they learn that this will eliminate private insurance.
The great variance in support for the program just based on terminology (Study by the Kaiser Family Institute) demonstrates that Americans really don't know enough about Medicare for all versus Biden's plan to make a decision on it. I believe if Biden explained the benefits of eliminating private insurance, people would realize they don't actually like their employer-provided insurance as much as they thought. At the end of the day, private health insurance is a business with a motive to make a profit, but your health is at stake. A system that publicizes healthcare would insure no that the only goal of healthcare, is healthcare.
An article in Kaiser Health News shares data from a KFF/L.A. Times Poll from May 2019 found that "about 40% of people with employer-sponsored coverage said they had trouble paying medical bills, out-of-pocket costs or premiums. About half indicated going without or delaying health care because — even with this coverage — it was unaffordable. And about 17% reported making 'difficult sacrifices' to pay for health care."
A Gallup poll shows that in 2018, 70% of Americans thought that the current U.S. healthcare system was in a "state of crisis" or had "major problems."
Biden's best bet for insuring 100% of Americans AND maintaining popularity is to break down what Medicare for All would mean — it would mean an overhaul of the current system that is in "crisis."
How Medicare for All Works
How will we pay for it?
Medicare for all, in proposals from Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Pramila Jayapal propose increased taxes on the rich, typically those 400% above the poverty line.
2. What would you have to pay out of pocket?
Nothing! The benefits proposed are extremely expansive so the chance of having a co-pay is very small.
3. Will you have to start seeing different doctors?
No. Medicare for all would build on the existing system.
4. Will your private insurance still be an option?
No. However, in 2018, 27.5 million people were uninsured, so the current system may not be one worth preserving.
Biden's policies right now are all based on public support. He's trying to win, and that makes sense. But in an attempt to win, Biden has been talking less and less about concrete ideas such as the 10 million people on his plan who remain uninsured and more and more about "honor and decency on the ballot." These are great concepts but as voters, we need to press Biden on policy so when he hopefully is elected, he can make changes to make America a better place.
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