How long before the market realizes that better advance preparation for epidemics and pandemics would be good for the economy (including the stock market)?
Bill Gates, one of the most ruthless businessmen of the modern era, talked about this 5 years ago!
UPDATE: The Atlantic has a great article listing all the times our government has been warned about the imminent danger of a pandemic. In fact, “a pandemic disease is the most predictable catastrophe in the history of the human race, if only because it has happened to the human race so many, many times before.”
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Biden is strictly against Medicare for all. I am very sad that Bernie is losing and not able to convince Biden to pick that. Andrew Yang’s idea of freedom dividend (1000$/month) is already being picked up even by Republicans now.
Biden is definitely not “strictly against Medicare for all”. The difference between Biden and Sanders is tactical, not strategic. Here are some good reasons to be against instituting MfA as Sanders proposes:
Right now, in the middle of a huge health crisis, seems like a very bad time to completely change our healthcare system. Our healthcare system is about to be overwhelmed.
The Clintons tried to institute MfA, and it failed. Obama tried to have a public option in the ACA, but it failed as well — and that was when the Dems had majorities in both houses of Congress. In fact, we are in serious danger of losing the ACA, even without a public option.
Sanders is an ideologue, and wants to change everything — his self labelled revolution. Americans will resist that. I don’t believe that Sanders would have any chance to get MfA passed.
Many Americans believe (right or wrong) that MfA means that they will lose their health insurance from their employer. They also believe (again, right or wrong) that they will end up paying for other people’s health insurance, and they don’t like that. I think the opposition to MfA will change (albeit slowly), and to me, the best approach is to take advantage of that and get a public option in place. That way, Americans will have a choice between their employer health insurance and a public option. They will also get a chance to see if a public option is better than what they have now. When they figure out that the public option is cheaper and simpler, that is when the country will be ready for MfA.
And finally, I will add that now that I am on Medicare, I have to say that while it is definitely better than not having Medicare, it doesn’t hold a candle to single-payer systems I have experienced in three different countries (Canada, the UK, and especially New Zealand). I believe that we can do better than “Medicare for All”. I believe that the best way to get to that is to start with a public option.
In my case, I am all for a single payer system, but that’s because I have experienced it firsthand. Don’t Americans deserve the same opportunity to try it out before we change everything?
IK, I don’t disagree with you, but your point about doing this in the middle of a healthcare crisis is not valid, because anything like this will not be done this year and surely the crisis will be over by when it does begin to be developed.
As far as the Clinton plan, that was decades ago and it was Hilary doing the whole thing and misogyny was even more rampant then than now. I always felt that it was because it was her pushing for it, (the little woman didn’t know her place after all), more than the idea itself.
I don’t want to lose my employer backed Medicare plan. It’s from a large airplane and aerospace corporation who is currently having a rough time. So we might lose it anyway, but I’m hoping they hang in there for a few more years. Although I suspect, if the problems get worse, that we will be the first ones dumped out of the life raft.
I give Bernie kudos for pushing us to the left. Something long overdue in this country.
Don’t get me wrong. I love the fact that Bernie Sanders and (speaking of misogyny) Elizabeth Warren have been pushing us to the left, since we have been way too far to the right for too long. I actually prefer Warren to Sanders; the problem I have with Sanders is not his policies, it is his tactics, which have alienated so many people. For me, he is a classic ideologue, which will indeed help create a devoted/fanatical following, but Trump also has a devoted following and see how that has worked out.
Let’s stop the polarization (on both sides). Ironically, most of the success in moving us back toward the left has not actually come from Sanders (or even Warren). We now have legalized gay marriage, and we are on our way to decriminalizing marijuana (something that was illegal in the first place only because of racism). Those are big steps!
Now, Biden has adopted two plans from Sanders and Warren (bankruptcy reform and free college for families below a certain income level). So Sanders and Warren are having success in pushing the US to the left.
But right now, it is clear that MfA is not a winning proposition, and we have a better path to it through a public option. It will take longer, but I believe that the results will be better. Why is it clear? Because even Democrats didn’t go for Warren’s pushing MfA.
The biggest flaw within the ACA is funding, no designated source, such as a national sales tax dedicated to the program.
People who pay premiums ARE paying for other people that is how insurance works, also Medicare Medicaid and for people without insurance.
The law of the land is if you walk into an emergency room without insurance they have to treat you.
Does anyone think for a second the the hospital bears all the burden for that? No. Does anyone think for a second that insurance companies don’t make a profit? The CEO of United HealthCare make a cool $1 million, before stock options, etc.
If our system is so great then why are there fundraisers for people with insurance that get sick?
As retired military, I have Tricare, no premiums $300 deductible and a co-pay, up to the point I spend $3000. Then my insurance pays 100%. Everyone should have this.
Those without insurance work for a company that does not provide health insurance, makes to much for Medicaid, and can not afford $25,000 for personal premium and deductibles (based on my self-insured sister) My daughter, according to the state of Iowa, made $20 too much to qualify for Medicaid. INSAIN. If nothing else allow individuals in that situation to buy in to Medicaid