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
Dr. Adam Gaffney, an instructor at Harvard Medical School and president of Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP), made a case for implementing single-payer healthcare at Fox Business on Friday. (Photo: Fox Business/screenshot)
'One of the Best Cases For Single Payer I've Ever Seen': Watch Dr. Adam Gaffney Take on Skeptics at Fox
"I work in an intensive care unit. I've seen people come in with life-threatening complications 'cause they couldn't afford care... and we need, as a nation, to decide that that's not going to be acceptable."
Mar 01, 2019
Amid mounting excitement over new Medicare for All legislation unveiled this week, Dr. Adam Gaffney took on a panel of skeptics at Fox Business Network on Friday, delivering a widely celebrated argument for why U.S. lawmakers need to heed the growing public demands to replace private for-profit health insurance with a national single-payer system.
"Guys, you MUST watch this," tweeted Briahna Joy Gray of The Intercept. In the nine-minute segment, she said, Gaffney "makes one of the best cases for single payer I've ever seen."
Noting that every other highly developed nation has universal healthcare, Gaffney pointed out to the panel that "overall, the healthcare systems of these countries are quite high quality. Overall, they have higher life expectancies than we do; they have lower infant mortality... Overall, these nations achieve better results with less money."
Asked why a free market system for healthcare can't work "like it does with auto insurance," he said:
A true free market in healthcare is something... no civilized nation would ever accept. You'd have people literally dying on the street because they couldn't afford the care. You can't have a free market in healthcare when you think something is a right... that people should have healthcare by virtue of being a human being, then you cannot leave it to the free market. That means that people who can afford it get it and everybody else suffers.
I work in an intensive care unit. I've seen people come in with life-threatening complications 'cause they couldn't afford care... I don't want to see that anymore, and we need, as a nation, to decide that that's not going to be acceptable.
Gaffney is an instructor at Harvard Medical School, and a pulmonologist and critical care physician at the Cambridge Health Alliance. He also serves as president of Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP), which advocates for implementing a single-payer healthcare system in the United States.
The Fox Business Network segment aired just days after Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) introduced the Medicare for All Act of 2019. The bill has been praised as precedent-setting in terms of guaranteeing healthcare as a human right and is endorsed by PNHP.
In statement supporting Jayapal's legislation and denouncing what critics often call "Medicare for Some" proposals, Gaffney said, "Accept no substitutes--only single-payer, Medicare for All can fix the grave dysfunctions and injustices of the American healthcare system."
"Congress shouldn't be distracted with incremental plans like a Medicare buy-in or public option," he added. "The only way to achieve universal and comprehensive coverage is to eliminate the profits and waste of the private insurance industry, which drains hundreds of billions of dollars from our healthcare system each year."
The current profit-driven system in the United States "is failing both physicians and patients," Gaffney concluded. "We can do better. In fact, we have to: The health and future of our nation hangs in the balance."
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. If you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
healthcaremedicare for allphysicians for a national health program (pnhp)pramila jayapalpublic healthsingle-payer
Amid mounting excitement over new Medicare for All legislation unveiled this week, Dr. Adam Gaffney took on a panel of skeptics at Fox Business Network on Friday, delivering a widely celebrated argument for why U.S. lawmakers need to heed the growing public demands to replace private for-profit health insurance with a national single-payer system.
"Guys, you MUST watch this," tweeted Briahna Joy Gray of The Intercept. In the nine-minute segment, she said, Gaffney "makes one of the best cases for single payer I've ever seen."
Noting that every other highly developed nation has universal healthcare, Gaffney pointed out to the panel that "overall, the healthcare systems of these countries are quite high quality. Overall, they have higher life expectancies than we do; they have lower infant mortality... Overall, these nations achieve better results with less money."
Asked why a free market system for healthcare can't work "like it does with auto insurance," he said:
A true free market in healthcare is something... no civilized nation would ever accept. You'd have people literally dying on the street because they couldn't afford the care. You can't have a free market in healthcare when you think something is a right... that people should have healthcare by virtue of being a human being, then you cannot leave it to the free market. That means that people who can afford it get it and everybody else suffers.
I work in an intensive care unit. I've seen people come in with life-threatening complications 'cause they couldn't afford care... I don't want to see that anymore, and we need, as a nation, to decide that that's not going to be acceptable.
Gaffney is an instructor at Harvard Medical School, and a pulmonologist and critical care physician at the Cambridge Health Alliance. He also serves as president of Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP), which advocates for implementing a single-payer healthcare system in the United States.
The Fox Business Network segment aired just days after Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) introduced the Medicare for All Act of 2019. The bill has been praised as precedent-setting in terms of guaranteeing healthcare as a human right and is endorsed by PNHP.
In statement supporting Jayapal's legislation and denouncing what critics often call "Medicare for Some" proposals, Gaffney said, "Accept no substitutes--only single-payer, Medicare for All can fix the grave dysfunctions and injustices of the American healthcare system."
"Congress shouldn't be distracted with incremental plans like a Medicare buy-in or public option," he added. "The only way to achieve universal and comprehensive coverage is to eliminate the profits and waste of the private insurance industry, which drains hundreds of billions of dollars from our healthcare system each year."
The current profit-driven system in the United States "is failing both physicians and patients," Gaffney concluded. "We can do better. In fact, we have to: The health and future of our nation hangs in the balance."
Amid mounting excitement over new Medicare for All legislation unveiled this week, Dr. Adam Gaffney took on a panel of skeptics at Fox Business Network on Friday, delivering a widely celebrated argument for why U.S. lawmakers need to heed the growing public demands to replace private for-profit health insurance with a national single-payer system.
"Guys, you MUST watch this," tweeted Briahna Joy Gray of The Intercept. In the nine-minute segment, she said, Gaffney "makes one of the best cases for single payer I've ever seen."
Noting that every other highly developed nation has universal healthcare, Gaffney pointed out to the panel that "overall, the healthcare systems of these countries are quite high quality. Overall, they have higher life expectancies than we do; they have lower infant mortality... Overall, these nations achieve better results with less money."
Asked why a free market system for healthcare can't work "like it does with auto insurance," he said:
A true free market in healthcare is something... no civilized nation would ever accept. You'd have people literally dying on the street because they couldn't afford the care. You can't have a free market in healthcare when you think something is a right... that people should have healthcare by virtue of being a human being, then you cannot leave it to the free market. That means that people who can afford it get it and everybody else suffers.
I work in an intensive care unit. I've seen people come in with life-threatening complications 'cause they couldn't afford care... I don't want to see that anymore, and we need, as a nation, to decide that that's not going to be acceptable.
Gaffney is an instructor at Harvard Medical School, and a pulmonologist and critical care physician at the Cambridge Health Alliance. He also serves as president of Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP), which advocates for implementing a single-payer healthcare system in the United States.
The Fox Business Network segment aired just days after Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) introduced the Medicare for All Act of 2019. The bill has been praised as precedent-setting in terms of guaranteeing healthcare as a human right and is endorsed by PNHP.
In statement supporting Jayapal's legislation and denouncing what critics often call "Medicare for Some" proposals, Gaffney said, "Accept no substitutes--only single-payer, Medicare for All can fix the grave dysfunctions and injustices of the American healthcare system."
"Congress shouldn't be distracted with incremental plans like a Medicare buy-in or public option," he added. "The only way to achieve universal and comprehensive coverage is to eliminate the profits and waste of the private insurance industry, which drains hundreds of billions of dollars from our healthcare system each year."
The current profit-driven system in the United States "is failing both physicians and patients," Gaffney concluded. "We can do better. In fact, we have to: The health and future of our nation hangs in the balance."
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