Those fighting for single-payer healthcare in California recently put some more meat on the bones of their plan to cover every Californian.
The authors of Senate Bill 562, the Healthy California Act, declared they would push for a true single-payer system: coverage for all medical care for all residents, no co-pays or deductibles, and the ability to choose your own doctor. The system would be run by a panel appointed by the Governor and Legislature.
The proposal is incredibly ambitious, as it seeks to cover everyone on Medicare, everyone who gets their insurance through their employer, and all undocumented immigrants.
Media coverage of the plan has focused on two major roadblocks:
The first is funding the program, which Jerry Brown cites as his primary problem with SB 562. This is an extremely complicated issue. Some argue overhead savings and the increased ability of California to throw tremendous weight around when negotiating terms of care with providers and drug companies make this less of an issue than opponents claim it is. I personally feel that whatever increased costs are estimated to be, the fight should be to cover them by finally implementing long-time progressive ideas for revenue streams — Prop. 13 reform or oil production taxes, for example.
The second major problem is one I haven’t considered before. Since the program would fold all Medicare and Medicaid funding into its operations, the federal government would have to approve this new direction for federal funding. In theory, Trump would seem to support state’s rights on this, but in the ongoing federal battle with California, I can see this turning into a proxy war in which Team Trump seeks to submarine the state’s efforts to achieve single-payer.
Funding issues seem surmountable, unless the price tag is so steep, the majority of Californians simply believe it’s not worth the cost. Or, if too many Californians simply don’t want to give up the health insurance they receive through their employer to an untested system. Both these scenarios would require a strong campaign to convince residents single-payer is worth it.
As for the federal government shutting down the program by refusing to release Medicare and Medicaid funds: I say bring it on. Trump ran on a populist message that promised health care for everyone. Let him show his true colors in a grand, obvious way by opposing the Healthy California Act.