NPR AUDIO: Bernie Sanders Knows His Medicare-For-All Bill Won't Pass. That's Not The Point.

[Donkees]

August 11, 20175:00 AM ET


Excerpts:

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders will introduce a bill next month to create a government-run, single-payer health care system. And he knows it's going to fail.

"Look, I have no illusions that under a Republican Senate, and a very right-wing House, and an extremely right-wing President of the United States, that suddenly we're going to see a Medicare-for-all, single-payer passed," he said recently, sitting in his Senate office. "You're not going to see it. That's obvious."

The point of the bill, Sanders says, is to force a conversation: "Excuse me: why is the United States the only major country on earth not to guarantee health care to all people? Why are we spending far, far more per capita on health care than any other nation? Why do we pay the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs?"

The whole thing is more about political framing — getting Democrats to the point where this would be a top priority whenever the party is back in power.

That's how progressive activists like Adam Green, the co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, are viewing Sanders' impending bill roll-out.

"If we left this debate with 20 senators on the record supporting single-payer, and the entire Senate Democratic caucus uniting around giving every American the option of buying into Medicare if they want to, that would be a wonderful place to land," Green said.

http://www.npr.org/2017/08/11/542676994/bernie-sanders-knows-his-medicare-for-all-bill-wont-pass-thats-not-the-point

[Red Mountain]

1. Keep moving the conversation left

Republicans have been good at moving it right.

[JNelson6563]

2. Isn't that a Bernie thing tho?

Doesn't he generally show up with a bill that Yas no chance of passing and then walk away from the expected subsequent failure with nothing but a display of his brilliance and purity. Very helpful. Saving lives and what not. Hero.

[FSogol]

3. Yup, that's why I supported O'Malley and then HRC. Action is better than talk, even if the talk is

really great.

[Adrahil]

10. Yup.... politics is about accomplishing stuff.

I mean, the occasional "position" bill can be important. But it strikes me that at some point you actually have to make progress, even incremental progress, that will help people NOW.

[Jim Lane]

13. What stuff do you suggest we accomplish in the current Congress?

If you have an idea for a bill that would improve health care and that has a reasonable chance of being passed in the House, passed in the Senate, and signed by Trump, I'd be interested to hear it. Bernie probably would be, too.

[ProfessorPlum]

11. better not to try

or even message. Let the GOP do all of that.

Onward to victory!

[Equinox Moon]

4. Yep. Keep it in the forefront.

Keep the topic on the table. Great!

[BumRushDaShow]

5. Need more podium-pounding

and walking shoes because that's what DU said was the only thing needed to make this happen.

[WinkyDink]

6. "DU" is a monolithic entity, then? (Aside from the fact that your post makes no sense.)

[BumRushDaShow]

7. "DU" as in the editorial "DU"

with the site hijacked by a pile of loud folks who embraced and stoked ODS and who are now on JPR.

[David__77]

8. This is how it can be done.

The Repiblocan right didn't used to control the Republicans. Once they did, when in power the Reoublicans at least sometimes govern from the right. This is about defining the Democratic agenda.

[Orsino]

9. Democrats could be doing this.

If a MediCare For All isn't the only possible path toward universal health care, we need to bury the Party of No in analogous proposals.

Fighting to save the ACA is absolutely necessary, in the meantime but it had better not be our endgame. We're already on record as saying ObamaCare needs fixing, so let's look like we're trying.

[geek tragedy]

12. I'm all on board with this, as long as Democrats avoid the mistake Republicans

made--severe overpromising followed by an attempt to ram something through without deliberation.

An immediate switch to a full single payer system won't happen.

What can happen--expanding Medicaid eligibility for lower income workers (instead of forcing them to deal with the exchanges) , and allowing people to buy into Medicare at 55, while also working to make Medicare and Medicaid function more like a single system.