‘Our system is in dire straits’: progressive Democrats hold Medicare for All hearing

The Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) held a shadow hearing on Medicare for All on Wednesday, led by Pramila Jayapal and Debbie Dingell.The hearing comes as over half of the House Democratic caucus has co-sponsored Medicare for All legislation, and Senator Andy Kim introduced legislation on Tuesday that would enroll all children into Medicaid until the age of 26, while Republicans passed drastic healthcare cuts in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, including nearly $1n in cuts to Medicaid and allowing Affordable Care Act subsidies to expire.“I’m going to get this over the finish line before I die, and I don’t plan on dying soon. But I’d like to get it done,” Dingell said in an opening statement, citing her father-in-law, John D Dingell Sr, who drafted the universal healthcare legislation that laid the foundation for Medicare, and her late husband, John Dingell, who frequently introduced Medicare for All legislation in his decades-long career in Congress.“We spend twice as much per person on healthcare compared to other countries that have systems like Medicare for All, and we still have 28 million Americans without insurance, and an increase in the number of people uninsured since 2023,” she said.“We have worse outcomes, including low life expectancy and higher infant mortality rates. The only people benefiting are the corporations who are profiting while Americans are struggling.”National Nurses United, the largest union of nurses in the US, testified in support of Medicare for All, along with Public Citizen, Physicians for a National Health Plan, People’s Action Institute and other supporters of the policy.A study by Yale epidemiologists in 2020 found Medicare for All would save about 68,000 lives a year and about 13% in reducing US healthcare spending, about $450bn.“I do not exaggerate when I say our healthcare system is in dire straits. Every day in my clinic, I see patients struggling with the cost of healthcare,” said Dr Diljeet K Singh, president of Physicians for a National Health Plan, in her testimony at the hearing. “At least 35 cents of every healthcare dollar is wasted on insurance administration and corporate profit, not spent on patient care.”Jamie Brown RN, president of National Nurses United, described in her testimony the impact of healthcare employers prioritizing profits over healthcare, resulting in understaffed units and high patient loads that lead to worse health outcomes for patients.“The only way to transform our system for the better is to ensure that the profit motive is completely removed from the equation,” said Brown.The center-left Searchlight Institute has urged Democrats to refrain from supporting Medicare for All, citing a June poll by Tavern Research that found either a majority or plurality in support of single payer healthcare. Nevertheless the vast majority, 70% of those polled, preferred to keep their current health insurance – although the question did not account for the fact that 45% of respondents already received their insurance through Medicare or Medicaid.The thinktank has supported its Health Care Unity plan, which endorses incrementally expanding government’s role in healthcare such as negotiating drug prices and breaking up monopolies.In a separate poll conducted in November by the Medicare for All Pac, 52% of those polled were in favor of a Democratic candidate who supported the policy over 45% backing a Republican candidate supporting a standard Republican policy on healthcare. The poll found 90% support from Democratic voters for a universal healthcare policy.“Medicare for All remains, for the Progressive caucus, our number one priority for reforming our healthcare system, and we believe that it should be the number one priority for our Democratic party and for our country,” said Congressman Greg Casar at the hearing.He went on to cite the multimillion-dollar salaries of healthcare CEOs across the industry and the millions of dollars spent by healthcare corporations on lobbying in response to common criticisms from Republicans toward Medicare for All about the costs.“Healthcare should not be a privilege determined by your job, your income, or your zip code. Yet millions of Americans continue to delay or forgo care because they simply cannot afford it,” said Congressman Jesús “Chuy” García.Congresswoman Adelita Grijalva discussed her family growing up near a superfund site, having family members die of cancer, and requiring a hysterectomy at an early age.“We must address the underlying causes of this sickness of the system, not just treat the symptoms,” she said. “The symptoms of our current healthcare system are the highest out-of-pocket expenses for people in any high-income nation, the highest amount of medical bankruptcies, the highest national spending by far, worse health outcomes, delayed and denied care, and higher preventable deaths and lower life expectancies. The outcomes are especially terrible for people who are lower-income, people of color, and people who live in rural communities.”Congresswoman Melanie Stansbury cited the significant money spent on weapons and the US military in contrast with criticisms of the costs of universal healthcare system, as the Trump administration’s war on Iran has cost $37.5bn so far.“There is no person that should die because they’re afraid to go to the emergency room. There is no person that should live in a rural and tribal community in this country who can’t access basic care in their communities,” said Stansbury. “That is moral depravity. Healthcare is a human right.”In concluding the hearing, Jayapal emphasized healthcare for all as a cultural shift that would improve the lives of millions of Americans.“I think this is the moment where the current system has collapsed under the weight of for-profit insurance companies and all of the entities that stand to benefit,” she said. “It is going to be a fight to get there. But I believe the American people across party line are with us, and are looking for transformative system where everyone is in and nobody is out, and healthcare is truly a human right.”