Sen. Bernie Sanders is set to lead a Senate Budget Committee hearing on Medicare for All on Thursday as the coronavirus pandemic continues to lay bare the deadly dysfunction and greed at the heart of the United States' for-profit healthcare system.
The hearing, scheduled to begin at 11:00 am ET, will feature testimony from a number of experts and advocates, including former Michigan gubernatorial candidate Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, critical care physician Dr. Adam Gaffney, and National Nurses United executive director Bonnie Castillo.
"We are seeing unprecedented momentum for Medicare for All not just among nurses, but as part of a growing movement demanding health justice," Castillo said in a statement ahead of Thursday's hearing. "It is past time for the United States government to listen to nurses and listen to the people as we demand: Pass Medicare for All and guarantee healthcare as a human right."
Sanders (I-Vt.), the chair of the budget panel, is also expected to introduce an updated version of his Medicare for All legislation on Thursday with 14 Senate co-sponsors.
The Vermont senator has long argued that a single-payer system that provides comprehensive healthcare to all for free at the point of service would save both lives and money.
In a statement Thursday, Sanders' office noted that estimates show "Medicare for All could save 68,000 lives per year, and numerous studies find that Medicare for All saves the American people and the U.S. healthcare system billions of dollars a year."
"According to the Congressional Budget Office, Medicare for All would save $650 billion each year, improve the economy, and eliminate all out-of-pocket healthcare costs," the statement observes. "Even a study done by the right-wing Mercatus Center estimated that Medicare for All would save more than $2 trillion over a decade."
