Sally C. Pipes
The progressive crusade for single payer health care is reminiscent of the classic definition of madness – repeating the same thing over and over and expecting different results.
On the last day of January, a notable attempt to make California the first state to have a single-payer health care system lacks the votes needed to advance the bill by the legislative deadline. Failed when the supporters noticed. Instead of seeing the proposal defeat, Democrat Ash Kara, the main sponsor of the bill, shelved it at the last minute.
Kara was not disciplined. He vowed to fight. Progressivists will not abandon their socialized medical dreams, even if they are repeatedly defeated.
At the national level, single payers have been dying since Joe Biden defeated single payer Pied Piper, Senator Bernie Sanders, in the 2020 Democratic primary. Progressive simply wanted the pandemic to force Biden’s hand, but he refused to be upset.
Progressivists suddenly fell in love with federalism because there was no way for a single payer nationwide. If you can’t impose government-run health care from Washington, why not draft a blue state to show the possible blessings of socialized health care? Members of New York, Massachusetts, and more than 12 other states establish a single payer system within the border.
Proponents like to point out polls that show growing public support for single-payer health care. What they don’t mention is that support gets pretty cold when the public knows that someone has to step into an astronomical bill, the taxpayer. California has rejected multiple single-payer medical care by this year in a 1994 referendum and a 2017 parliament. Price tags have long been a problem.
This year’s proposal by Congressman Kalra required the largest tax increase in California’s history ($ 12,250 per household per year) to meet the potential annual cost of $ 391 billion. It’s no wonder that one survey found that 64% of voters were against this idea. Previous efforts elsewhere have received similar welcome. Progressivists ignited when Colorado introduced a single payer system to voters in a ballot initiative in 2016. Voters then learned that Colorado would face a new 10% tax on all wage and non-wage income to pay for the program. Benefits of social security.
Nearly 80% of Colorados voted against it. In Massachusetts, single payers have declined since the bill was submitted in 1986. You won’t even be out of the committee. Why are Beacon Hill Democrats so timid? Perhaps the fact is that the bill will be nearly twice the state’s budget and will require significant tax increases accordingly. Next is Vermont, home of Bernie Sanders. 2011, the government at that time. Peter Shumlin has signed a single payer bill. Three years later, the state abandoned the plan.
Vermont lawmakers are loyal to the Democrats’ tendency to know what the bill is and what is included, and the program they signaled requires an additional $ 2.5 billion in revenue in the first year. I was shocked to know that I would do it. Vermont collects only $ 2.7 billion a year in taxes, so even progressives had to admit that math didn’t work, but the exorbitant price tag is for government-run medical care. It’s far from the worst. A single payer causes enormous human casualties. Distribution, long wait times, and shortages of doctors are all hallmarks of a single payer system around the world. Progressives love to keep my home country of Canada as a model, but recent research shows that nearly two-thirds of Canadians want access to private health care. Services if that means they can get faster care and better access to the latest treatments and diagnostic tools.
Last year, the median waiting for specialist care after being referred by a general practitioner was more than 25 weeks. The state is a research institute for democracy, and democracy continues to vote for a single payer. Voters and their representatives of the provincial capital must ensure that the continued progressive promotion of government-run health care achieves the same objectives as previous efforts.
Sally C. Pipes is President and CEO of the Pacific Research Institute and Thomas W. Smith Fellow of Healthcare Policy. Her latest book is False Premise, False Promise: The Disastrous Reality of Medicare for All (Encounter 2020). Follow her on her Twitter @ sallypipes.
