SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Sen. Bernie Sanders Continues Fight for Single Payer
'The 113th Congress should recognize and proclaim that healthcare is a human right'
Dec 10, 2013
Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) continued his push for a single-payer system healthcare system on Monday, introducing legislation that he says would allow for better care at lower costs.
Called the American Health Security Act of 2013, the legislation states that "the 113th Congress should recognize and proclaim that healthcare is a human right," and calls for a Medicare-for-all system that would not only provide economic benefits but would address the "unacceptable rate" of Americans who are uninsured.
"It is time that we bring about a fundamental transformation of the American health care system," Sanders stated. "It is time for us to end private, for-profit participation in delivering basic coverage. It is time for the United States to provide a Medicare-for-all single-payer health coverage program."
In an op-ed earlier this year, Sanders called a single-payer program "the only long-term solution to America's healthcare crisis."
Such a program recently got the vocal approval of former Secretary of State Colin Powell, who said at an event last week, "I don't see why we can't do what Europe is doing, what Canada is doing, what Korea is doing, what all these other places are doing."
"I am not an expert in healthcare, or Obamacare, or the Affordable Care Act, or however you choose to describe it, but I do know this: I have benefited from that kind of universal healthcare in my 55 years of public life."
_________________
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) continued his push for a single-payer system healthcare system on Monday, introducing legislation that he says would allow for better care at lower costs.
Called the American Health Security Act of 2013, the legislation states that "the 113th Congress should recognize and proclaim that healthcare is a human right," and calls for a Medicare-for-all system that would not only provide economic benefits but would address the "unacceptable rate" of Americans who are uninsured.
"It is time that we bring about a fundamental transformation of the American health care system," Sanders stated. "It is time for us to end private, for-profit participation in delivering basic coverage. It is time for the United States to provide a Medicare-for-all single-payer health coverage program."
In an op-ed earlier this year, Sanders called a single-payer program "the only long-term solution to America's healthcare crisis."
Such a program recently got the vocal approval of former Secretary of State Colin Powell, who said at an event last week, "I don't see why we can't do what Europe is doing, what Canada is doing, what Korea is doing, what all these other places are doing."
"I am not an expert in healthcare, or Obamacare, or the Affordable Care Act, or however you choose to describe it, but I do know this: I have benefited from that kind of universal healthcare in my 55 years of public life."
_________________
Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) continued his push for a single-payer system healthcare system on Monday, introducing legislation that he says would allow for better care at lower costs.
Called the American Health Security Act of 2013, the legislation states that "the 113th Congress should recognize and proclaim that healthcare is a human right," and calls for a Medicare-for-all system that would not only provide economic benefits but would address the "unacceptable rate" of Americans who are uninsured.
"It is time that we bring about a fundamental transformation of the American health care system," Sanders stated. "It is time for us to end private, for-profit participation in delivering basic coverage. It is time for the United States to provide a Medicare-for-all single-payer health coverage program."
In an op-ed earlier this year, Sanders called a single-payer program "the only long-term solution to America's healthcare crisis."
Such a program recently got the vocal approval of former Secretary of State Colin Powell, who said at an event last week, "I don't see why we can't do what Europe is doing, what Canada is doing, what Korea is doing, what all these other places are doing."
"I am not an expert in healthcare, or Obamacare, or the Affordable Care Act, or however you choose to describe it, but I do know this: I have benefited from that kind of universal healthcare in my 55 years of public life."
_________________
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good.
News & Opinion
Trending
Common Dreams, Inc. Founded 1997. Registered 501(c3) Non-Profit
Privacy Policy