Bernie Sanders on the Affordable Care Act:

[Cali_Democrat]

Last edited Wed Mar 19, 2014, 12:34 PM - Edit history (1)

Bernie wrote this the day the Supreme Court upheld the law:


The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the Affordable Care Act. Sen. Bernie Sanders welcomed the ruling. "Today is a good day for millions of Americans who have pre-existing conditions who can no longer be rejected by insurance companies. It is a good day for families with children under 26 who can keep their children on their health insurance policies. It is a good day for women who can no longer be charged far higher premiums than men.

"It is a good day for 30 million uninsured Americans who will have access to healthcare. It is a good day for seniors who will continue to see their prescription drug costs go down as the so-called doughnut hole goes away. It is a good day for small businesses who simply cannot continue to afford the escalating costs of providing insurance for their employees. It is a good day for 20 million Americans who will soon be able to find access to community health centers.

"It is an especially good day for the state of Vermont, which stands to receive hundreds of millions of dollars in additional federal funds to help our state achieve universal health care.

"In my view, while the Affordable Care Act is an important step in the right direction and I am glad that the Supreme Court upheld it, we ultimately need to do better. If we are serious about providing high-quality, affordable healthcare as a right, not a privilege, the real solution to America's health care crisis is a Medicare-for-all, single-payer system. Until then, we will remain the only major nation that does not provide health care for every man, woman and child as a right of citizenship.

http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/a-good-day

Is the ACA perfect?

Hell no. Single-payer should be the goal.

But the ACA is an important step in the right direction. Progress is not about taking your ball and going home when you don't get your way. Progress is about making progress.

That's why Bernie Sanders is a Progressive.

[giftedgirl77]

1. Kick, we have to start somewhere....

ACA is wayyyyyy better than nothing.

[daleanime]

12. +1

[Jefferson23]

2. Of course, and in the mean time, we need to fight for those right now who have policies that have

left them in turmoil. I believe Bernie would agree.

[ProSense]

3. Sanders: “How many people will die if the Affordable Care Act is repealed?”

<...>

Obamacare “How many people will die if the Affordable Care Act is repealed?” Sanders asked at a hearing he chaired Thursday on what would happen if Obamacare is repealed. The hearing came on the 10th day of a government shutdown forced by House Republicans insisting that any deal to reopen the government defund the health care law. Watch excerpts from the hearing, Read Greg Kaufmann’s piece in The Nation

<...>

http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/the-week-in-review-101113

Two of my favorite posts about Obamacare:

Obama just launched single-payer in America
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024088437

Uh... we should be thanking *Bernie Sanders and Ron Wyden* for single payer in America.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024088636

[grahamhgreen]

5. You're helping us get to single payer or a public option or better, right?

[Cali_Democrat]

16. ProSense has done a tremendous job of highlighing the fact that this opens

the door for single payer in states.

The public option didn't even make it out committee in 2010 and there are even less Dems in Congress now. Soo....

GOTV 2014!!! That's the next step!

[Cali_Democrat]

13. That's great

The ACA does indeed make it easier for us to eventually achieve single payer.

[grahamhgreen]

4. So we are all working towards Single Payer or better... Right?

[polichick]

7. Now how would that benefit insurance companies?

This isn't about people, ya know - if it was we would've had Medicare for all decades ago.

Dem voters keep thinking the party is about them!

[OLDMDDEM]

6. Progressive

Last edited Thu Mar 20, 2014, 08:12 AM - Edit history (2)

Since the inception of the term "progressive" in our vocabulary, I've wondered what the difference between the two words is. Liberal versus Progressive. Actually, I'm proud to be a liberal. Remember Teddy Kennedy and his speech about the minimum wage. That was a liberal speaking.

[treestar]

8. Gee there's some common sense

And under the bus goes Bernie.

[LynneSin]

9. ACA is imperfect but way better than what we had before it.

If I blame anyone it's the republicans who defend the right of corporate profiteer over the health of the American people.

I hope that one day we'll get to single payer but truly believe that as long as idiots like the Tea Party exist then we'll be luck if we can keep ACA running.

[tarheelsunc]

10. But he's a DINO... or IINO... or... f*** you Sanders /sarcasm eom

[MineralMan]

11. We can get single-payer health care.

But first, we have to elect a Congress with a large enough Democratic majority to override the obstructionism of the Republicans. We can do that, if we have the will to do that. We Democrats can do that if each of us goes out and drags at least 10 Democrats to the polls for every election. For some of us, it's possible to do much more and get 100 or more non-voting Democrats to show up and cast their votes.

And as we do, we must ask each of those we convince to come to the polls to bring their friends and family to the polls, too.

Will we immediately get single-payer healthcare? Not in one election. We will get it when we have demonstrated that we can get good, progressive Democrats elected to Congress and inspire the kind of confidence that leads more to run. We can get single-payer healthcare if we want it and are willing to work for it. If we're not willing, we will get more of what we have.

GOTV 2014 and Beyond!

[Iliyah]

14. Agreed

And the gopers don't care if you, me or other don't have health care coverage unless you can afford it by way of lots of money. Obamacare is a start, just like Medicare & Medicaid (in California - Medi-Cal) had a rough start with total opposition. Now look at it, millions are covered by it that would not have health care if the GOPers had their way and they still want to roll it back. Same with SSI. People were upset that portions of their checks were garnish for both federal programs. People are now upset that if you don't want any health care coverage they have to pay a tax at tax time. Geez.

Single payer, yea it will come, but, probably not since Dems are doom in 2014 and of course the GOPers will try and repeal Obamacare for the 100th time and if successful, millions will lose their health care coverage, pre-existing coverage, and of course the naysayers will bombard the DU blaming Pres O and the Dems.

[MineralMan]

15. During the run-up to the 2008 election, I had a chance

to meet with the DFL (Democratic) candidate for my congressional district in Minnesota. Healthcare was the topic. We talked about single-payer healthcare, which I support strongly. The candidate shared my opinion that it would be the ideal solution and we even talked about how it is implemented in various countries.

She also told me that there was virtually no chance that single-payer healthcare could be implemented by the next Congress. She expressed some doubt that any healthcare initiative could be passed in the House at all, but that she planned to work hard to get something done that would help people who were uninsured. She believed, as I do, that the immediate need was to make insurance available to those people, no matter what, and that single-payer healthcare was not going to be an option right then.

Like her, I want single-payer, and understand that it will take a concerted effort to gain strong control of both houses of Congress before that will be a possibility. That's what I'm working for and what I hope every Democrat will be working for.

GOTV 2014 and Beyond!

[Cha]

17. THank you, Cali for Senator Sanders'.. reasonable common sense on ACA/Obamacare..

So grateful it's helping so many people who otherwise would be up the creek.

[Cha]

18. KICK!