Bernie Sanders opposes House bill to strengthen the Affordable Care Act.

[RandySF]

Link to tweet

Chris Hayes
‏
Verified account

@chrislhayes
Following Following @chrislhayes
More
This Sanders answer whether he would support House Dem legislation to improve ACA is pretty interesting. He says "no" and says he doesn't support any incremental reforms, which is quite a departure from his record. He's voted for all kinds of incremental reforms including ACA
5:08 PM - 26 Mar 2019
495 Retweets 1,629 Likes Stephanie ReneeEnnabubsdirt russellMichelle MainsBecky GanzhornIndyRob Orthman 🌥Denise Louis 📻jp #RESIST
592 replies 495 retweets 1,629 likes
Reply 592 Retweet 495 Like 1.6K

[JI7]

1. maybe he doesn't understand it

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

55. Maybe Bernie DOES & understands that single-payer MFA is the ONLY solution to guaranteeing the right

to healthcare for every inhabitant of this county.


Bernie & Elizabeth 2020!!!
Welcome to the revolution!!!

[brooklynite]

91. So, having NO health care is better than an inferior one?

Last edited Thu Mar 28, 2019, 09:18 AM - Edit history (1)

[betsuni]

93. Why is it the ONLY solution?

[Amimnoch]

97. It's BS. for him it's all or nothing.

If he'd have had his way, there would have been no ACA to begin with for us to build upon should we take back the Senate and POTUS. He did ultimately vote with the Democratic Party to pass the ACA, but not without all the griping and insults to the Democratic Party for which he is famed.

[enid602]

138. Russia

Interesting how Bernie’s suddenly become more cavalier about not supporting traditional dem causes now that the Russia investigation is over.

[NastyRiffraff]

168. It isn't, of course

And Bernie knows that. But he's pushed HIS health care idea for so long and so loudly that he will not budge, even if it means millions of Americans losing their health care. He knows damn well what would happen, but his giant ego won't let him compromise.

Bernie is ALWAYS right.

[George II]

108. A single-payer MFA will never pass. So why not support something that will pass?

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

112. Yup, I gotcha... they said the same thing about the Civil Rights Act.

Bernie & Elizabeth 2020!!!
Join the revolution!!!

[George II]

117. No they didn't.

So tell me, what's the point of not supporting a current bill in the House that could get us CLOSER to "M4A"? And how does Sanders propose to get his bill through the Senate?

[ehrnst]

131. +1000. No way it can even start the process until we have the house, Senate and WH.

In the mean time, voting against protections for people who are sick and rely on the ACA is the opposite of advocating for health care.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

182. ACA only goes away if MFA passes to replace it... it's not single payer or nothing.

So, let's at least get everyone on the record to see where they stand... with people suffering in desperate need of healthcare in this country, who Bernie is advocating for, or the greedy health insurance companies, which are profiting off of people's misery and not even adequately serving their needs


Bernie & Elizabeth 2020!!!
Welcome to the revolution!!!

[ehrnst]

184. Again, we're not getting the Senate back any time soon, let alone SCOTUS.

And even if the CBO gives it an acceptable score, and even if we have the Senate and the WH and Congress and SCOTUS, what makes you think we are going to replace the ACA with something that promises to upend the health care system far more than the ACA? Getting the ACA with all three was a massive accomplishment on the part of Pelosi, and it had to be phased in, and while it was being phased in, SCOTUS put a knife it its side by striking down the Medicaid expansion requirement.



But I'll bite - what is the timeframe for MFA to be completed in the event of the planets once again aligning, and how does it impact current coverage during implementation?

What is your timeframe for Roberts, Gorsuch, Thomas, Kavanaugh and Alito to be replaced with more liberal justices?

[George II]

229. He introduced it in 2017, do you know the status of it? Hearings, committee votes, floor votes?

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

249. Criticize Bernie all you like... his ideas are catching on for a reason.

You're welcome to jump on the bandwagon anytime... there's always room for one more.


Bernie & Elizabeth 2020!!!
Welcome to the revolution!!!

[George II]

251. I'll support the law we currently have and also support improving it. Not hitching my wagon...

...to a horse that doesn't seem to be going anywhere any time soon.

[ehrnst]

130. Senator Sanders is no LBJ. And Sanders doesn't have an MLK making the case to the public.

Last edited Wed Mar 27, 2019, 05:09 PM - Edit history (1)

LBJ was an effective, team player who also knew where the bodies were buried.

He had the respect of fellow Senators, and had the skill to persuade in addition to simply scolding.

LBJ had skills that Senator Sanders does not have.

You also don't seem to know much about the proccess by which the Great Society legislation came into existence. If you think that it started working right away...

[George II]

135. Using this analogy, it's like being against Brown vs. Board of Education because....

.....we didn't have the civil rights act yet.

[ehrnst]

136. Exactly. (nt)

[Celerity]

205. good analogy

[Demsrule86]

152. Millions of people are going to be hurt. And the civil rights bill was negotiated.

This is one reason why I don't think Sanders will be our nominee.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

179. Riiiight! Like all those tens of millions who will be given their constitutional right to healthcare

Bernie & Elizabeth 2020!!!
Welcome to the revolution!!!

[Demsrule86]

183. It would come too late for my daughter who will not survive until 2020

Without healthcare so spare me the greater good arguments. I think they are nonsense. You work with what is possible.

[ehrnst]

188. It's as though the focus is to banish pharma and insurance companies, and people getting health care

is a secondary outcome.

I'm no fan of unregulated private insurance or pharma, but if it's a choice between actually getting UHC sooner by expanding on what we have in the ACA (which we know won't disrupt health care delivery,) and refusing to go foward with anything but MFA, which will not stand up if challenged all the way to SCOTUS, I'll take getting actual people actual care now.

If we were starting from scratch, that would be different, but that train left the station in the Truman administration. We had a chance again in 74, with a plan that Nixon put forth that was actually to the left of the ACA, but Democrats told Teddy Kennedy to walk away from anything but single payer.

It was one of Kennedy's biggest career regrets, because it made the perfect the enemy of the possible, and we might have something much closer to what the rest of the developed world has now. How many lives could have been saved, and how many people would have gotten care if only he hadn't said "single payer or bust."

We have another chance not to fuck it up with the ACA. It might be decades before we can get it to what we need, but we're at least on the road.

[betsuni]

194. +1

[Demsrule86]

198. You said it better than I did.

If we lose the ACA We lose health care for a long time.

[Maru Kitteh]

203. Your daughter and my youngest are to be collateral damage in the eyes of THE REVOLUTION

I guess we're supposed to be happy to give them up "in order to bring THE REVOLUTION™" or so we are told.

[ehrnst]

238. I think that some people believe that THE REVOLUTION will be exempt

from any of the negative consequences, disruption and backlash that always come with revolutions - as we learned emancipation, prohibition, desegregation, and Roe v Wade.

[ehrnst]

186. With current SCOTUS lineup? Riiiiiight.

The ACA got a limb ripped off by SCOTUS when they struck down medicaid expansion as a requirement.

And you think that they're going to let MFA stand? They have Gorsuch and Kavanaugh and Roberts who are going to be there for decades.

[LanternWaste]

261. Can you support that allegation with objective evidence?

Or is it simply throwing more stuff at the wall in hopes it sticks?

[lark]

256. Because it's about him and not about sick people

That's always the play with this guy.

[Trumpocalypse]

113. So it is the perfect is the enemy of the good?

[kstewart33]

114. It's a dream.

Our chances of taking the Senate are about 1 in 100. Single payer won't pass Congress but other reforms could very well pass, given the growing pressure the public is putting on Congress about healthcare.

Bernie aims for the moon. His enthusiasm is understandable, but single payer is a dream, at least for several years.

[BannonsLiver]

119. Well that's the spin....

[ehrnst]

122. In the meantime, people get sick, have pre-existing conditions, etc. What about them?

Even if we take back WH AND the Senate in 2020, if Senator Sanders' bill gets a cost analysis from the CBO that's acceptable to the public, and then reaches the floor, refusing to support and strengthen the ACA protections that are keeping many people alive isn't going to help those people until then. In fact, the opposite.

Then it will take years, if not decades, after all that to transition and implement fully.

This sadly appears to be political theatre leading up to elections at the potential expense of people's health care NOW. I thought the primary goal of progressives was to get health care to people who need it in the soonest, most effective way possible, and not be predicated on validating a particular political brand/getting rid of health insurance companies.

[R B Garr]

139. Excellent post, and this is what it is--inexcusable political

theater. Sanders has been all or nothing for decades, and again it will be nothing at the expense of those who fought for and actually attained something.

After watching his performance on Hayes show, his motives for continuing to undermine Democrats who are working to keep the ACA are more than angering. There is no excuse for it. The midterms were won by focusing on the ACA. Those are the facts.

[Demsrule86]

153. MFA will be demonized in the general. No one should run on it.

And there are serious obstacles too.

[Kahuna7]

262. I agree 100%. If I were running, I would call M4A a mere slogan and suggest

that Medicaid is a more practical solution. Medicare is for seniors and they will not want it tampered with. Bernie polls very poorly with the over 50 crowd.

[Demsrule86]

274. Yep and it means universal care which is the goal.

[yardwork]

127. It isn't the only solution, and I would expect an experienced senator to know better.

[Demsrule86]

149. No it isn't. MFA is not likely to work as 0nly 17% of people are for it when told work place

Insurance is going away. We will be tossed out of office and get nothing. Sanders needs to consider the millions some who would die. This is why I vote for Democrats...this is too important to screw up.

[True Blue American]

151. Bernie just said

Single Payer would NEVER PASS!

[Demsrule86]

154. But he still won't vote for the only Healthcare that is possible?

[True Blue American]

157. That is what he said!

Last edited Thu Mar 28, 2019, 06:58 AM - Edit history (1)

Today. Who knows tomorrow?

[Demsrule86]

158. Dear God. I hope this now makes those that support him in the primary

Last edited Wed Mar 27, 2019, 05:25 PM - Edit history (1)

reconsider,

[SleeplessinSoCal]

196. Bernie is way too set in "his ways".

I heard Hayes give him ample opportunity to be less rigid and open to a problem he wont acknowledge - he is not close to having the Senate back his bill.

Thankfully AOC sees things more practicality.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

202. Yeah... he only wants everyone in this country to have healthcare, as is their right.

What an outrage!!


Bernie & Elizabeth 2020!!!
Welcome to the revolution!!!

[MrsCoffee]

240. And if he can't get that for us today (he can't), then we deserve nothing?

Come on, you can’t really believe that. Can’t you stop for one second and see how wrong this is?

This will affect millions of people TODAY, some who will die with nothing waiting for this promise he can’t fulfill anytime soon.

Ffs.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

248. Yeah I believe in nothing as the alternative... why make that up?

You can make a better argument than that!!


Bernie & Elizabeth 2020!!!
Welcome to the revolution!!!

[MrsCoffee]

257. Not exactly what I said or meant.

I was saying that Bernie's position on the Chris Hayes show was that he believes it should be MFA or nothing.

I don't think you believe that, which is why I said "you can't really believe that".

But Bernie's answers seemed very callous.

[SleeplessinSoCal]

255. and he needs to make it clear that Insurance will still be available.

It's the only way to make it Constitutional. Repugs will take his idea down if he doesn't do that. And since we're already there, he needs to help shore up the ACA. But for now he wont do that.

[sandensea]

258. +1

Voters are ready for Medicare For All.

Reich-wingers are hopeless, and trying to find "common ground" with them is a fool's errand.

And the rest are much less likely to support anything incremental, than they were a decade ago.

[LanternWaste]

260. It's fun (and certainly ethically convenient) to pretend there's only one solution

to any given problem, but mathematics denies your unsupported premise.

Much as 2+2=4, it also equals 6-2 and -98+4.

But I get it... math and science are easily overlooked when our sacred cows demand that of us.

[pnwmom]

269. Why? It's not the only solution in Canada, Germany, or Switzerland,

and everyone in those countries has guaranteed healthcare.

[Demsrule86]

165. Maybe. But still question whether anyone should vote for him in a primary.

[NurseJackie]

2. Jesus.

[dalton99a]

11. Pretty damn cruel

Millions of Americans are alive/not bankrupt because of the ACA

[Demsrule86]

150. I don't understand is Sanders willing to have no deal since there is sno way we get MFA

Without the Senate and presidency. This can't be true.

[tymorial]

102. Pretty much.

[BannonsLiver]

123. Purity Nurse Jackie. Must. Have. Purity.

[NurseJackie]

134. What good purpose does "all or nothing" serve when it means we get "nothing"?

I guess I understand how a politician can be motivated by his (or her) PERSONAL VANITY and the desire to boast to their constituents that he (or she) "didn't compromise" and "stood up for what's right" (blah, blah blah) but the politician's ego gets in the way of the FACT that something is better than nothing.

Personally, if a politician calls himself (or herself) "progressive"... then I expect to see PROGRESS. I expect to see that politician's willingness to find common ground, be willing to compromise, and to make PROGRESS.

The "all or nothing" philosophy is a stupid and unreasonable approach that only causes MORE suffering.

Why would ANYONE pursue a course that CAUSES MORE SUFFERING???

[TomSlick]

3. I heard the interview.

Sen. Sanders' comments made no sense. Essentially, he was saying he wants it all or nothing. I suppose that if the uninsured die, that's just the price to be paid in the name of policy purity. Sen. Sanders lost points with me tonight.

[JI7]

5. then why hasn't he passed it all in his many years in office ?

[TomSlick]

12. As I understood him,

he admitted that his plan to completely rework the health care system by eliminating private health insurance was currently unobtainable. Nevertheless, he is opposed to incremental steps like repairing the ACA or Medicare by-in. It really did sound like an argument that the system needs to completely collapse so it can be rebuilt.

I was listening reasonably closely and understand the issue as well as most. If I misunderstood Sen. Sanders, he really needs to clarify his position.

[dogman]

22. My take,

Neither is going to pass. So fight for what you want now. You don't negotiate away your position on a talk show, I wish more would realize that.

[LuvLoogie]

36. So says a millionaire who qualifies for medicare

Can we finally dispense with the notion that this guy qualifies as a Democrat. He's as bad as Jill Stein or Glen Greenwald.

[redstatebluegirl]

110. No kidding.

[Demsrule86]

156. If that is his plan why would any Democrat vote for him in a primary?

[MyNameGoesHere]

95. All or nothing

Is the platform of his supporters. It seems in line with everything about the independent Senator from Vermont.

[Cha]

4. Because, of course, he doesn't.

I'm glad he's not running things. Too divisive.

[Power 2 the People]

6. He knows it's time to go all in on Medicare for All. No more Incrementalism,especially with Trump

aiming to eliminate the ACA lock stock and barrel. You can't improve something that Trump and the SCOTUS may wipe from the books.

It's time to be bold my fellow Democrats!

[RandySF]

10. And let Americans pay the price with their lives in the meantime?

[Hassin Bin Sober]

15. This bill isn't going anywhere with the current senate or president.

No one is going to live or die based on this bill.

[George II]

45. So? The bottom line is he's not prepared to support the position of the Democratic Party.

[Blue_true]

62. Exactly. And he has no viable alternative, he admitted as much. nt

[Blue_true]

61. So can Bernie's alternative pass?

It is all about living in the world as it is my friend.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

69. The world as it is means that bill or any other bill passed by Democrats is going nowhere in...

... this Senate or Oval Office. So people screaming Bernie is killing children can cool their jets.

I’ll ask again, why should Bernie support their symbolic bill when he has his own symbolic bill? He’s hell bent on Medicare For All. Full stop. No distractions.

Keep in mind Bernie voted for the ACA when it actually counted. Because that vote mattered and it was the best we could get at the time. And Bernie wasn’t one of a couple “good Democrat’s” trying to water the bill down either.

[Blue_true]

72. So if neither the democrats' bill or Bernie's plan now have a chance,

why doesn't Bernie simply chill and focus on campaigning? As it is, he is needlessly poking a finger in the democrats' eye.

I want to see Bernie on a debate stage opposite Pete Buttigieg, that is going to be a game changer, IMO.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

74. That's exactly what he is doing. He's sticking to his message.

Hayes even chuckled and acknowledged Sanders’ point that the bill wasn’t going to be brought up in the senate.

When asked several times if he was supporting it he pivoted to what he was supporting. And they both acknowledged this house bill was going nowhere.

[George II]

100. Did he even introduce "his" bill in the Senate yet? What were the votes for/against it?

The fact is that NO "Medicare for All" bill is going to pass, forms of it have been introduced for just about every year for decades going back the 1940s. How many have passed?

On the other hand the ACA has passed. It can be improved upon.

The Empire State Building wasn't built in one shot. First the foundation, then the first floor, etc. up to the 102nd floor.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

88. Well said!!

Bernie & Elizabeth 2020!!!
Join the revolution!!!

[Demsrule86]

167. No, nor should it. It would paint those who vote for it socialist.

[WeekiWater]

67. They are as Sanders helps Republicans promote the image that...

Progressive legislation is bad.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

70. Lol.

Yeah, no.

[WeekiWater]

71. It's not that funny.

He has a history of things like this. For example, voting with republicans against a pathway to citizenship.

He sounds like a detached multimillionaire with quality healthcare.

[Demsrule86]

170. My 22 year old daughter will not survive if the ACA goes down. She can't be without

Insurance and has a pre-existing. I feel Sanders's position further endangers the ACA with nothing to replace it with, I will never forgive him if this gives the GOP an out...could Hurt our 2020 chances. It is hard enough with Trump trying to end the ACA.

[ehrnst]

137. So opposing a bill that is going nowhere is OK now, because the bill is futile?

As I recall Cory Booker got flamebroiled here on DU when he voted against a symbolic amendment that Sanders promoted concerning drugs from Canada.

Even though there was no way it would pass.

TOTALLY different this time because Bernie.

[Demsrule86]

171. It gives the GOP cover and helps Trump.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

174. Umm

I don’t know if this is a vote you want to bring up in this context.

The Senate voted down the amendment 52-46, with two senators not voting. Unusually, the vote was not purely along party lines: 13 Republicans joined Sanders and a majority of Democrats in supporting the amendment, while 13 Democrats and a majority of Republicans opposed it.

[ehrnst]

177. And? (nt)

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

254. Yeah but it sounds more horrendous sensational to accuse Bernie and his policies of killing people.

Bernie & Elizabeth 2020!!!
Welcome to the revolution!!!

[Power 2 the People]

18. If It no longer exists there's nothing to improve upon. Drumpf will get his way.Time to go all in.

He's going after the ACA like never before under Barr.

The Justice Department now believes the entire Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional

https://www.law.com/nationallawjournal/2019/03/25/in-reversal-doj-now-says-whole-aca-unconstitutional/?slreturn=20190226215654

[Drunken Irishman]

129. Wow. You sound positively giddy over people losing their healthcare.

1) The ACA exists. This isn't up for debate. There is no debate. It exists.
2) Just because the DOJ is going all in on repeal doesn't mean shit - it's still up to the same Supreme Court that ruled in 2012 it was constitutional.
3) I can't stress this enough - IT IS CURRENTLY STILL THE LAW. It will likely still remain the law. Bernie's turn on the ACA means he's advocating against a law that helps millions of Americans. He is openly joining Trump is pushing to eliminate health coverage for a good amount of Americans.
4) Even if it was repealed, please tell me how Mr. Sanders, who has no substantial legislation to his name as either a congressman or a senator, expects to pass Medicare for All with a Republican Senate?

Let's call a spade a spade - Bernie is playing politics with peoples' lives.

[TomSlick]

28. That seemed to be the plan.

Tear the system down - sure some people die but there will be public pressure to get something done. Susan Sarandon would get her revolution after all.

I hope I misunderstood Sen. Sanders (although I don't think I did) and that he clarifies his statements.

[Celerity]

35. plus 30 million ( the amount who will lose coverage if Rump wins in the SCOTUS)

so so sick of the Berner's purity bullshit

people are going to fucking DIE

[George II]

46. +1,000,000

[dubyadiprecession]

107. I guess BS doesn't care about that aspect.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

14. Not to mention this bill, or any other bill strengthening ACA, is DOA in the senate and Oval Office.

Medicare For All is the message for 2020. What’s the point in a symbolic half measure?

[Power 2 the People]

19. +1

[Demsrule86]

160. We don't know that. The Gop is taking heat and this gives the GOP coverage.

[Trenzalore]

25. I have some bad news for you

Best case scenario the democrats win the Senate and the White House in 2020.

You still aren't getting Medicare for All.

[Power 2 the People]

30. Don't be so pessimistic. We'll get there. Especially if Trump is dumb enough to kill the ACA.

[Trenzalore]

31. I was around in 2009-2010

Much more politically active than. Not as much now.

The democrats killed the public option not the republicans. You don't have enough votes in the democratic caucus for Medicare for all let alone a 60 vote majority in the Senate.

[Eko]

49. Actually,,,,,

Lieberman as an independent killed it.

[watoos]

50. Joe Lieberman, running as an Independent,

killed the public option.

[Trenzalore]

51. He was the Democratic nominee for VP in 2000

We cannot disown Lieberman after putting him on the ticket.

If he hadn't done it Max Baucus or Evan Bayh would have stepped up.

[betsuni]

92. "We"

[True Blue American]

155. Oh, yes we can disinherit Lieberman!

I did when he backed McCain, helped Max Baucus and Grassley torpedo the Single Payer.

Finally both parties dumped him. Then he became an Insurance Lobbyist. His wife already was one!

Oh, yes, Joe Lieberman was disinherited long ago!

[ehrnst]

133. It's not 'pessimism." If Trump gets help killing the ACA from 'progressives,' that's the opposite

of advocating for health care for the people.

And beyond dumb.

MFA, won't even get a vote until we get the Senate and WH back, even if it does get a CBO score that's acceptable. And even then it will take YEARS after that to transition the health care system.

Don't you think that the ACA would have been put in place all at once, rather that incrementally if that was even remotely possible?

[Demsrule86]

161. That is not true. We get nothing if Trump kills the ACA. THE Senate is tough for us,

Look at the map.

[Amimnoch]

181. I wouldn't bet on that one anymore.

Since the tRumpublicons hadn’t done everything they did to wreck the fillibuster, I’d have to agree. However, now, if we regain the Senate, I hope whomever our majority leader is just a loose with the nuclear option as that jackass Mitchy.

I want to hear their screams of anger as we trample them down.

I hope if there’s any investigations into any of our members, our own POTUS appointed AG gets to delivery a short summary without releasing.

I want to see fucking executive orders and national emergencies called on guns to stop shootings, climate change, treatment of immigrants, police shootings of innocent minorities, etc.. etc.. etc..

[ehrnst]

132. There is no way other than incrementally to retrofit the health care system in this country.

Be as "bold" as you want, but there isn't any way to do this, no matter what a politician running for office promises you.

[Demsrule86]

162. Yes and that is Ok.

[MrsCoffee]

241. And yet you tried to push another article in GD that said he would support strengthening it.

After this post even!

Which was proven false with his own words.

How can you push both narratives at once and expect anyone to take you seriously?

[Power 2 the People]

252. Don't be ridiculous. I posted an article from the Huffington Post. I DIDN'T WRITE THE ARTICLE

[dalton99a]

7. Same ol' Bernie or Bust - Me or Nothing

[mcar]

8. What!

[highplainsdem]

9. He came across as unreasonable, especially compared to Pete Buttigieg, who was interviewed next.

[Celerity]

38. YES

Ditch the Bern, go for the Buttigieg

[Stuart G]

64. Again, this is a perfect example of Bernie creating division in the Democratic Party.

...If he is argumentative to a point that he wants "all or nothing" then he fails the test of leadership. Incremental steps are very important in achieving goals. Look at the civil rights battle. It was incremental steps that won, not the all or nothing steps.
...Here, right now, Bernie is creating division among dedicated Democrats. No, He won't vote for a Democratic position because it won't "pass." ...Is this a team player? Answer that question please..

[kstewart33]

115. I don't think Bernie is all that interested in the Democrat Party.

He's a "democrat" for the $$$, voter lists and visibility, especially the debates. Division helps his chances.

[Blue_true]

63. I want the contrast to become plain in the first debate. nt

[Cha]

13. Yeah, so? NO ONE IS TALKING ABOUT #ACA2 BEING THE END OF THE LINE.

Link to tweet

[SHRED]

16. He has healthcare

So it gives him the freedom to play politics with our lives apparently.

[Demsrule86]

172. Which is more than my kid will have if this causes us to lose the ACA. WHAT

if Robert's thinks the Democratsi don't want it either.

[dlk]

17. There Are Some People Who Become Much More Stubborn as They Age

[dalton99a]

20. Again, similarities to the current White House are eerie

[dlk]

24. Yes

[MrsCoffee]

98. Right?

[dogman]

26. And some would negotiate away half of their position on a talk show.

Bernie is smarter than that.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

32. And there are adults who know this symbolic bill is going nowhere in the senate or Oval Office.

We also know any repeal bills are DOA in The House.

ACA is not moving one way or the other in the legislature. Everyone knows that. There’s no reason Bernie should muddle his message for a symbolic go nowhere bill.

Bernie is campaigning on MFA. So are a few more candidates.

[RandySF]

34. "All or Nothing" gets people hurt. Period.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

43. Walk me through how this bill does anything other than pass the house?

It won’t get brought up in the senate - you know, where Bernie votes.

Saying people are going to be hurt by this non vote is a bit dramatic, no?

[Cha]

21. Beto: We will defend the ACA. We will protect the care of those whose lives depend on it.

Link to tweet

[Trenzalore]

23. He could never be an effective President

He has no concept of making things better instead of failing trying to make things perfect.

[NurseJackie]

29. Well said!

Perfectly described.

[Maru Kitteh]

204. " He has no concept of making things better instead of failing trying to make things perfect."

OMG that is OUTSTANDING.

WELL SAID.

[ehrnst]

239. Being an effective POTUS involves working well with others, and

not treating anyone who disagrees (or fact checks) as being corrupt or a corporate shill.

We've seen enough of that with the current POTUS.

[greatauntoftriplets]

27. And what are people supposed to do in the meantime?

Looks like its his way or the highway.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

33. You aware the republicans hold the senate and the presidency.

What is this bill going to accomplish in the meantime? Tell me how this tides us over?

We pass a bill in the house? Then what?

[George II]

41. It's known as "party loyalty" and solidarity. The fact that just hours before he said that....

....trump and "his" justice department filed to invalidate the entire ACA means nothing to him?

[RandySF]

80. So it's ok to bail on it?

What a message to send to the resistance.

[George II]

37. Sadly, I'm not all that surprised with the answer. What DOES surprise me is Hayes' acknowledging...

....the answer to the question they way that he did.

[Cha]

42. That was a pleasant surprise.

[OhZone]

39. That's why he withdrew his support from Hillarycare.

If more people had supported it back then, why might even have single payer by now.

Oh well.

[R B Garr]

141. Exactly! It was the same BS back then. All or nothing

decades ago, all or nothing now. This is a very good look into the character as you see what he is willing to sacrifice for unattainable ideals. Thirty years is a lot of progress down the drain from Hillarycare.

[Cha]

40. He also just threw the House Dems under the bus...including many who presumably support BOTH

Link to tweet

[jalan48]

47. He's doesn't support insurance industry healthcare. Pretty simple.

[comradebillyboy]

79. So he doesn't support thee health care that the vast

majority of working people have, employer subsidized private health insurance.

[Freddie]

89. That most of those people

Actually like and do not want replaced by something (single payer) that might not be as good as what they have now. But let’s hold out for all or nothing because that ALWAYS works, right?

[jalan48]

116. No, he supports a single payer plan that does not rely on employers providing a health care plan.

Last edited Wed Mar 27, 2019, 12:40 PM - Edit history (1)

I agree with Bernie that health care is a right not a privilege.

[BannonsLiver]

124. You don't think healthcare is a right?

“I agree with Bernie that health care is a privilege, not a right.”

[jalan48]

140. Thanks-I had it backwards. I need another cup of coffee.

[Gothmog]

48. Here is the clip

Link to tweet

Link to tweet

[Cha]

52. Mahalo, Goth.. smh

[Hassin Bin Sober]

54. Charles (whoever that is) GABA tweeted a lie.

Sanders said three times he wouldn’t support the house bill because he is supporting MEDICARE FOR ALL. When pressed if he would vote no for Medicare for ‘America’ in the senate he said “it ain’t gonna come up in the senate.” Hayes chuckled and agreed with him saying maybe Mitch McConnell will troll the Democrats.. @10:05

Thanks for posting the actual video mahalo!

[betsuni]

57. "I helped write the Affordable Care Act. So I don't want somebody suggesting I'm trying to dismantle

legislation I helped write." Bernie Sanders in 2015, when he said his plans for single-payer health care were not based on dismantling the ACA but expanding and improving it.

[Cha]

81. BS sure flipped a switch.

[betsuni]

84. Not very consistent.

Hard to keep track of. Hillary wrote that after the election, "We recently shared a smile and a sigh when we heard Bernie called for improving the Affordable Care Act immediately by embracing the approach that I proposed as a candidate: a public option in fifty states and lowering the Medicare age to fifty-five."

[Cha]

85. Wow.. I'm guessing sirota and briahna

wouldn't like that.

And, no worries for BS.. that's not "evolving".

Thanks for the quote, betsuni

[betsuni]

86. It's almost like he's a politician adjusting policy to changing conditions.

Here's a quote from Paul Krugman: "You could argue that policy details are unimportant as long as a politician has the right values and character. As it happens, I don't agree. For one thing, a politician's policy specifics are often a very important clue to his or her character ... . For another, I consider a commitment to facing hard choices as opposed to taking the easy way out an important value in itself. But in any case, the way Mr. Sanders is now campaigning raises serious character and value issues."

[Cha]

87. Exactly, Paul Krugman! He gets it. Thank You

for this quote from him, betsuni

[betsuni]

90. You're welcome for the quotes and thank you for the tweets!

[lapucelle]

94. I think Chris Hayes, like many former supporters, has moved on at this point. N/T

[Cha]

59. Bernie won't support the Dems' efforts to bolster the ACA. Make no mistake: if the ACA goes

Link to tweet

[LuvLoogie]

53. Bernie resents the Democrats like a deadbeat boyfriend resents his girlfriend's parents.

"Your folks are so bourgeoisie. Why do you have to work so much just to be like them? You could'a bought a used car. BTW I need to use it tonight. Did you fill it up?"

[SFnomad]

56. lol ... I was thinking of it as Bernie being resentful when his ex-girlfriend moves on from their

abusive relationship ...

Why are you going out with him? Btw, you're still fat, ugly and dumber than a box of rocks. You'd be so much better off with me. Why can't you see this?

[LuvLoogie]

58. LOL...

[RandySF]

60. +1

[True Blue American]

173. Apt description.:)

[betsuni]

65. But Bernie is more of a Democrat than most Democrats, amirite?

Playing to his base. Repeat the magic words "Medicare-for-All." He keeps saying health care is a human right, but this is pure politics. Once you climb out on that limb of the ideology tree, there you are dangling.

[sheshe2]

146. Love your first line.

[WeekiWater]

66. Being opposed to positive incremental change on an issue...

Is to stand in opposition to all positive change on an issue.

Most of us already understand this about him. It’s the exact reason so many progressives are strongly opposed to him. He is a hindrance to progress. He creates false narrative that the hard work of great people on the left is bad. It’s deceptive as he only does it for personal gain.

[peggysue2]

125. This is what happens . . .

when ideology blinds you to everything but 'my way or the highway.' The idea of progress and actual lives get lost in the mix. It's not unlike the theory that voting for Trump in 2016 would pave the way for 'Our Revolution.'

Think Susan Sarandon and her minions.

Because when you're living on a mountaintop, the carnage in the valley is very far away, the pain an abstract. You're not going to feel the discomfort; the sacrifice in healthcare or any other issue will be carried by others.

But the dream lives!

Voters need to remember this the next time Bernie supporters insist that Dems=Repugs, that leveling the whole system is actually a good thing because the road to paradise runs through destruction.

It doesn't.

We're witnessing that in real time: the populist fantasy. Doesn't matter whether it comes from the Left or the Right. The end note is always the same.

[sheshe2]

187. When you take the progress out of progressive...

All you are left with is l’ve.

[Starry Messenger]

68. He didn't even mention the ACA by name on his spot with Hayes tonight

Anyone refusing to run on Obama's record is going to lose

[BlueFlorida]

73. Paraphrasing for simplicity

"My way or highway, even though my way hasn't even been planned yet."

[still_one]

75. It was that all or nothing principle which facilitated putting trump in the WH

[Cha]

76. And, their "All" was based

on Lies.

[still_one]

96. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

[WeekiWater]

77. Would he Veto incremental reforms?

Would he veto a pathway to citizenship if he doesn’t feel comfortable with the Visa requirements in the legislation? Would he veto incremental healthcare reforms?

[LongtimeAZDem]

78. Good point

[SFnomad]

82. And we all know, she was a bad egg ...

[Cha]

83. Sirota and Briahna were great hires. "Republicans are trying to repeal Obamacare and I don't support

Link to tweet

[TCJ70]

99. Yeah...because he wants to go further with M4A.

Is this supposed to be surprising? For those who knee-jerk to anger every time he speaks, I thought we weren't supposed to do things that have no chance of becoming law? Remember last time when everything Sanders said was painted as "ponies" because OBVIOUSLY if it can't get signed by the president why even talk about it?

Anyway, Trump and his administration are, at this very moment, trying to destroy the ACA through the courts. If that happens it won't be because Bernie did not supporting a bill that won't make it past the senate. It will be incumbent on every Democrat to meet the Republicans with big plans to draw the biggest difference between the two groups here.

Tell you what, put the person who wants to go the furthest on healthcare in the White House and give them a Democratic senate and we can do all these things. Incrementalism...whatever...that time has passed on several fronts. Healthcare being just one of them. Medicare for All or at least a buy-in option for everyone regardless of age is where I'm at at this point.

[George II]

101. If one can't go the first few steps, how can one go "further"? And we should all remember this...

....the next time someone exaggerates and says he "always" votes with the Democrats.

As for your finally point, we DID put someone who want to go the furthest on healthcare in the White House and give them a Democratic Senate, and we got a workable sensible bill. That was about a decade ago.

[TCJ70]

104. So let's do it again. The ACA was a big step...let's take another one. n/t

[George II]

106. And that's what the Democrats are trying to do in the House. They introduced a bill...

...that will strengthen the ACA. Sanders has already gone on record that he won't support it.

[TCJ70]

109. To be clear...I like the things in the proposal laid out yesterday.

The premium cap is particularly interesting to me as I pay an absurd amount every month at the moment. Given the choice between that proposal and going for an even bigger step, though? I'll take the bigger step since neither will pass the senate anyway and would certainly not be signed by Trump.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

121. Not only will it not pass the Senate, it won't even be brought up in The Senate.

Hayes even chuckled and acknowledged that fact when Bernie pointed it out. Cue the outrage anyway, I guess, because Bernie “doesn’t plan on voting for it.” It’s funny how our so called experts on how things work forget the fact this bill dies in The House no matter who supports it.

[George II]

197. So tell us then, when will "Medicare for All" be brought up in the Senate?

Similarly, why introduce a bill if one knows it'll never make it out of committee or ever make it to the floor of the Senate?

Sound familiar?

[Cha]

195. Progressives Support Shoring Up ACA Before Tackling Medicare For All

Despite a large division in the Democratic party over the best health care solution ― single-payer or a continuation and possible expansion of something like Obamacare ― progressives in Congress appear to be in lockstep with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s priority of shoring up the ACA before tackling anything like Medicare for All.

“I’m happy to support any provision that strengthens the ACA and plug some of the gaps that we’re seeing, particularly as it’s under assault by the president,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) told HuffPost on Wednesday. “I think it’s part of a longer-term vision, at least for me, towards guaranteeing ― truly guaranteeing ― health care for all Americans.”

More.. https://www.democraticunderground.com/10142293852#post8

The House Dems are doing this the smart way. They know ACA isn't the end game.. they want to protect those who are on ACA NOW.

[betsuni]

199. Good to hear!

[BlueMTexpat]

103. Just another reason why

he is not now and never will be among even my top ten.

[still_one]

105. ++++++++++++++++++++++++

[Gothmog]

111. Washington Post-House Democrats' health-care bill hurts Trump and Bernie

Link to tweet

What Democrats propose is the sort of step-by-step expansion of Obamacare that both Republicans and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) vehemently oppose. Republicans want nothing; Sanders wants to scrap everything in favor of single-payer health care.

The House Democrats’ bill sets out a proposal to, among other things, reduce health-care premiums (capping out-of-pocket costs at 10 percent of income) and expanding tax credits for those making up to 400 percent of the federal poverty line. Protect Our Care, a progressive group backing the legislation, explains, “In all, the bill’s extended tax credits, reinsurance programs and premium assistance would cut premiums for all ACA-compliant plans sold on the individual market, reducing premiums or deductibles for 13 million with individual market coverage and creating lower cost options for 12 million uninsured people eligible for coverage through the marketplace.” The bill also reinstates the guarantee for those with preexisting conditions, disallows non-ACA compliant plans and reaffirms the list of essential health-care benefits to be covered by the ACA.

[Blue_Tires]

118. Like I keep saying, he's only in this thing for himself

[yardwork]

128. YUUUUUUGE ego.

[Amimnoch]

247. Just heckles from the balcony section.

[BannonsLiver]

120. Bye bye Bernie!

This will be used to great effect by his rivals. I can hear the attack ads being cut now.

Bernie’s got his, but unless he gets it just the way he wants it, he won’t defend your right to yours. That sums it up perfectly.

Bernie just stepped on a rake. Remind me who the gaffe machine is supposed to be?

[yardwork]

126. WTF, Bernie!

[workinclasszero]

143. Bernie wants something much much better than the ACA..Medicare for all!

Last edited Wed Mar 27, 2019, 01:43 PM - Edit history (1)

It's funny, not in a humorous way, that lots of people here don't seem to understand that the ACA did absolutely NOTHING for millions of Americans!

Here is what it did for me personally, living in a redstate controlled by the republican party. I went on the exchange looking for health care insurance under penalty of law if I didn't have any.

Not having lots of money to spend...I of course went right to the cheapest bronze plan offered thinking this is great, finally I'll get some real insurance!

Needless to say, it was wildly expensive and the deductibles were a sick joke! So I left the exchange depressed that the ACA was not going to save me at all.

Not only did it not give me decent affordable healthcare insurance, it made me an outlaw for being too poor to live up to it's lowest standards and so I was fined by the IRS on top of still not having any health insurance!

The ACA is NOT the answer to healthcare in America unless you are good with half of the country or more going without any healthcare!

I still to this day have no real healthcare, just a BS policy to keep from getting fined by the IRS. I'm 63 and haven't seen a doctor in a good five years or so. At this point I'm just praying I make it to 65 so i can get some real health insurance called...MEDICARE!

Which is what Bernie wants for ALL of us!

[TwilightZone]

144. The plural of anecdote is not data.

If you have proof that it did "nothing for millions of Americans", let's see that, not an extrapolation of your personal experience.

"It didn't work for me" isn't a reason to dump the whole thing or oppose making it better.

[workinclasszero]

145. Sure, I'm the only person in the entire country that the ACA didn't help

Whatever makes you sleep well at night I guess.

It must be nice living in great liberal blue states that try to do the best for their inhabitants.

I just wish those folks would have a little pity and mercy on the liberal dems that suffer in redstates.

The GOP in my state made damn sure that their would be no subsidies for the ACA, no medicaid expansion and tough shit if you couldn't afford it.

Missouri and the ACA’s Medicaid expansion
Legislature continues to oppose Medicaid expansion, considers work requirement
Louise Norris April 15, 2018




https://www.healthinsurance.org/missouri-medicaid/

That's 87,000 people in this state alone that the ACA does absolutely nothing for! Add up all the other redstates and you have a full blown healthcare crisis on your hands WITH the ACA in place!

We need Medicare for all!

[Cha]

169. I'm sorry you're "suffering" in a red state.

But that doesn't mean ACA isn't helping Millions of people who are enrolled and getting help with their pre-existing conditions.

5 Ways the Affordable Care Act is Helping Real People

Affordable Care Act Helps People with Pre-Existing Conditions

Based on their past proposals to replace the ACA, the Republican replacement plan would drastically weaken these protections.

Repeal of the ACA threatens against the 133 million people with pre-existing conditions. Share Kimberley's story.

https://familiesusa.org/5-ways-affordable-care-act-helping-real-people

[workinclasszero]

175. So what's the answer for 87000 uninsured in Missouri

under the ACA?

Go pound sand? I got mine tough shit for you?

And that's just one state of course.

I hope you can see why I and many other people want a hell of a lot better health care coverage system than the ACA.

[Cha]

178. No one is talking about ACA being the end game..

Link to tweet

BS says right here ACA needs to be defended against assault and protect "preexisting conditions..

Link to tweet

[Demsrule86]

163. It is as ll we got. And all that we may ever have. How can he send thousands to their deaths?

Sorry ...that is heartless.

[TexasTowelie]

201. Please don't add false information to this thread.

Even before the ACA became law, more than half of the population had medical insurance of some nature. It may not have been great insurance for some, but most people had employer-based insurance.

[workinclasszero]

210. Just the facts....

This is the real reason most Americans file for bankruptcy

Two-thirds of people who file for bankruptcy cite medical issues as a key contributor to their financial downfall.

While the high cost of health care has historically been a trigger for bankruptcy filings, the research shows that the implementation of the Affordable Care Act has not improved things.

What most people do not realize, according to one researcher, is that their health insurance may not be enough to protect them.

Lorie Konish
Published 11:32 AM ET Mon, 11 Feb 2019 Updated 2:20 PM ET Mon, 11 Feb 2019

https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/11/this-is-the-real-reason-most-americans-file-for-bankruptcy.html

People are increasingly turning to GoFundMe for medical bills — and the company's own CEO realizes that's a huge indictment of the US healthcare system

Sam Baker, Axios Jan. 17, 2019, 12:46 PM

https://www.businessinsider.com/gofundme-being-used-for-medical-costs-is-bad-sign-for-us-healthcare-2019-1

So under the ACA masses of people are forced to turn to sites like GOFundMe to beg for help to pay their insane and ever increasing medical bills to stave off bankruptcy and losing every thing they worked their whole lives for.

What a great system huh?

[TexasTowelie]

236. Despite all of this information that you provided,

your statement that more than half of Americans were uninsured isn't true.

I didn't say that the insurance coverage was adequate or that all medical conditions were covered at 100%. Some insurance policies may cover 80% of the bills, excluded pre-existing conditions, or had limits such as paying for alcohol/drug rehabilitation only twice within a lifetime. Medicare also has its limitations which is why there is a private market that covers gaps such as for prescription drug coverage.

I considered filing bankruptcy about a decade ago because I had expenses that weren't covered. Most of my problems were related to being diabetic. I had high expenses because my dental insurance had a limit of $1,500 per year so that anything in excess of that limit became an out-of-pocket expense. There were also some items not covered in my health insurance plan such as syringes and test strips to check blood glucose levels. I decided not to file for bankruptcy because of the high cost of hiring an attorney for my case and the requirements to attend credit counseling classes since I did not have a vehicle and I frequently had to stay at work late since I was a salaried employee.

The information you presented about the percentage of people claiming bankruptcy should be tempered with those considerations and others that I may not have thought about. I'm also certain that a significant percentage of those who filed bankruptcy were completely uninsured. For whatever reason, those people took a gamble and lost. At least they had an opportunity to discharge their debts in court and start anew.

I'll agree with you that it isn't a great system, but the cost to cover everything at 100% with no restrictions would be so astronomical that the system would collapse. That is why there are things such as co-pays and deductibles so that people don't abuse the system and have some "skin in the game." Medicare for All may have some impact on bankruptcy filings, but it won't solve all of the various problems unless something is done to close the gaps that exist. That would require the 1.45% contribution paid by employers and employees to increase which will not be popular with voters in a general election as they watch their paychecks decrease and lose employer-based insurance. That is why a M4A bill is DOA.

[sheshe2]

147. Dear Goddess, say it ain't so!

[SidDithers]

148. Sanders needs to burn the village in order to save it...nt

Sid

[Demsrule86]

164. Not all burned villages get saved and the harm to folks would be a horrific.

[Liberalhammer]

159. He lost my primary support

I'd perfer a Medicare for all system, but not supporting fixing and improving what we have is a terrible decision.

[still_one]

166. All I know, there is no incentive for me to vote for someone in the primaries who appointed three

people to his campaign, who not only voted for Jill Stein, but encouraged others to do likewise, up to the day before the general election.

[Kahuna7]

259. +1

[Trumpocalypse]

176. This is making the perfect the enemy of the good thinking

One of the reasons the left loses.

[LakeArenal]

180. If we could get all or nothing....

We would have single payer since the Dems had control of all three branches and Nancy Pelosi was speaker.

“Who thought health could be so complicated”! Said trump.

[betsuni]

189. We'd have nothing.

There was a filibuster proof majority (60, meaning every single one of the Senators had a veto) in the Senate for only four months and ten days. Joe Lieberman refused to vote for the ACA unless the public option and lowering the age of Medicare to fifty-five were removed.

[George II]

190. "Single payer" wouldn't have passed, even with Democrats in the majority in both houses....

It's just not a concept that would have been readily accepted by the majority back then and probably not even today.

So then, we would not have "single payer".

[George II]

191. Sanders' new national press secretary weighs in on twitter:

The way I see it, "pressuring our representatives" to do something that their constituents don't necessarily want is not "critical to success".

Link to tweet

[RandySF]

192. So what are the 20 million Americans at risk?

Collateral damage?

[George II]

193. Seemingly. Sad that for some people "politics" is a binary choice.

[Cha]

200. I called it Last Night..

85. Wow.. I'm guessing sirota and briahna wouldn't like that.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1287&pid=39925

oh and..

Link to tweet

"Incremental" is the ONLY WAY POSSIBLE MOST TIMES. Unless you're a fucking dictator like trump and his EOs.

[Cha]

223. I'll pass on BG's "Incrementalism is both a electoral & moral loser."

silly tweet.

Link to tweet

[George II]

232. Yes, I agree, will pass on whatever she means by that.

[Eric J in MN]

207. Bernie's point is that he's for Medicare for All.

The incremental House bill won’t get a vote in the Senate this Congress. He didn’t say how he’d vote if it did.

[Cha]

216. Don't try to explain BS.. we know what he said..

and the Progressive House understands the need to strengthen ACA.. they want MFA, too.

Progressives Support Shoring Up ACA Before Tackling Medicare For All

snip//

“I’m happy to support any provision that strengthens the ACA and plug some of the gaps that we’re seeing, particularly as it’s under assault by the president,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) told HuffPost on Wednesday. “I think it’s part of a longer-term vision, at least for me, towards guaranteeing ― truly guaranteeing ― health care for all Americans.”

Ocasio-Cortez said she understood prioritizing fixes to the Affordable Care Act. “Because we have a Republican Senate, a Republican president, and so the things that we have the ability to pass right now are pretty narrow,” she said, though she added she wanted hearings on Medicare for All and didn’t think single-payer solutions had been given enough attention from the Democratic caucus yet.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10142293852

Link to tweet

Link to tweet

[betsuni]

237. He helped write that "incremental" ACA.

[George II]

242. He said that he wouldn't support it, to me that's "no":

Link to tweet

So how is Sanders' bill that he introduced almost two years ago - when will the Senate vote on it?

[Eric J in MN]

268. Bernie has been in Congress since 1991

...and never voted against a bill which would improve healthcare.

[TwilightZone]

250. Then, why did he co-sponsor the Senate version?

Now he's grandstanding, and it's rather inexplicable.

[susanna]

208. Then he and I are quite done.

I'm SO over playing nice.

The ACA allowed my younger sister some dignity in her death (she was 46, with an 11 year old autistic son). Her death was horrific and fast (cancer); it was made only slightly decent by no one coming after the family for the enormous $$$$$ she/we had no way to pay.

Anyone - and I mean ANYONE - who says they can't support the ACA, or improvements to it, can fuck right off in my world x100000000000.

I will ONLY support those who will wholeheartedly support ACA until we can get something better. And I truly pray for that time.

I know the ACA isn't perfect. But it gave my sister and my family some much-needed peace at the end of her life.

I wish none of this upon anyone else, but until you are there, you do not even KNOW.

[betsuni]

209. [phone]

[susanna]

211. Thank you, betsuni.

I would trade the world for a better outcome than what we experienced. It was harrowing.

But I was so happy the ACA was there to make things less awful. Not perfect, mind you; just so much less awful.

[workinclasszero]

212. Anyone who can sit back and watch millions of Americans suffer and die for lack of health insurance

and care under the ACA because redstates refuse to subsidize it can...in your own words..."fuck right off in my world x100000000000."

Medicare for ALL!!!

[susanna]

213. OK, then explain to me the mechanism in how MFA works.

I know how ACA worked in my family's situation.

The ACA is REAL. It is the LAW. MFA is imaginary at this point.

Please, proceed in telling me what I should know.

What the red states do is not remotely in my purview, nor was it even mentioned in my discussion. YOU brought it up. Explain to me how it will be all better with MFA...and while you are at it, how we will pay for it.

Thank you in advance.

[workinclasszero]

217. "The ACA is REAL. It is the LAW."

Oh really? How do you explain this then?









Thats just four states and look at all the people with ZERO healthcare under the ACA!

[susanna]

219. I explained this in my post.

I have no way to make red states obey the law.

Nor do you.

Next?

[workinclasszero]

224. So you understand then why the ACA is a false savior for millions of Americans

and why 70% of the public (and Bernie) are in favor of Medicare for all!

70% of Americans now support Medicare-for-all—here's how single-payer could affect you
Yoni Blumberg Tue, 28 Aug 2018

The vast majority of Americans, 70 percent, now support Medicare-for-all, otherwise known as single-payer health care, according to a new Reuters survey. That includes 85 percent of Democrats and 52 percent of Republicans. Only 20 percent of Americans say they outright oppose the idea.

"Medicare is a very popular program, so the idea of expanding it to everyone is popular as well," Larry Levitt, senior vice president for health reform at the Kaiser Family Foundation, tells CNBC Make It. "The advantage of Medicare-for-all, which is much closer to how the rest of the world provides health care to their residents, is that you can achieve universal coverage at a lower cost."

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/28/most-americans-now-support-medicare-for-all-and-free-college-tuition.html

[susanna]

226. Of course I understand the support - who doesn't want it?!

I, too, would like it. Like yesterday.

But I also know that percentage will shrink once they realize how much they would pay for it, tax-wise.

When someone gives me a policy-driven, financially-sound way to pay for it, I am all ears.

Until then? Good day, friend.

[workinclasszero]

234. It's amusing that this country can charge a trillion and a half dollars to throw at billionaires

and Big business that pay no taxes on a credit card...weeee!.... socialism/welfare for the rich!

Deficit? Who cares!

Millions and millions to bail out GM and crooked banks and wall street hustlers.

700 billion a year or more to throw at our military. Millions upon millions daily for never ending wars, 3 mill a pop or so every time the orange criminal in the white house want to go golfing in Florida...

..BUT...

We just cannot come up with the money for healthcare for all.

It's real funny how it works that way in America.

Oh and we were just informed recently that we don't even have the money for the Special Olympics anymore, sorry kids!

Somehow the rich will power through it all, I have no doubt!

[susanna]

244. Well said.

The GOP's priorities are completely wrong and it makes me sick. I call them out specifically because these are THEIR policies. I have been watching them hustle this rigged game for a long, long time. The corporations and the rich have no better friends than the GOP.

All I can do is to continue to work/vote towards a fairer and more just system and I know you are doing that, too. Peace to you.

[Cha]

215. As I explained to you in another post..

ACA isn't the end game.

The Progressive House uinderstands this.. BS does Not.

Progressives Support Shoring Up ACA Before Tackling Medicare For All

snip//

“I’m happy to support any provision that strengthens the ACA and plug some of the gaps that we’re seeing, particularly as it’s under assault by the president,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) told HuffPost on Wednesday. “I think it’s part of a longer-term vision, at least for me, towards guaranteeing ― truly guaranteeing ― health care for all Americans.”

Ocasio-Cortez said she understood prioritizing fixes to the Affordable Care Act. “Because we have a Republican Senate, a Republican president, and so the things that we have the ability to pass right now are pretty narrow,” she said, though she added she wanted hearings on Medicare for All and didn’t think single-payer solutions had been given enough attention from the Democratic caucus yet.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10142293852

Link to tweet

Link to tweet

[workinclasszero]

221. So how much longer do millions of Americans have to wait until we get real healthcare for all?

The ACA passed in 2010 and it's now 2019.

People get sick all the time.

People have accidents all the time.

Babies are born all the time.

Mothers need pre-natal care all the time....etc.

It's been 9 years already, when are we gonna get universal healthcare for all under the ACA??????

Health care is a basic human right! Not something to be put off for decades!

[Cha]

225. I'll go with the Wisdom of the House Dems on this..

and all the citizens who think this is the wisest course of action..

And that was the message from every progressive HuffPost spoke to on Wednesday. Democrat after Democrat said defending the ACA was the first priority, even as liberals argue that Obamacare is ultimately insufficient in providing coverage for everyone and containing costs.

Rep. John Garamendi (D-Calif.) said he was “not at all frustrated” with the priority the ACA had taken over Medicare for All.

“In fact, I’m very pleased. We’ve got to deal with the crisis at hand. The president just created a crisis,” he said.

"Democrat after Democrat said defending the ACA was the first priority"..

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=2293874

[susanna]

228. So much this.

Fix what we have now until we have the resources to go further.

This is NOT rocket science.

[Cha]

214. I'm so sorry for what

your sister and your family and friends went through, susanna.

The "progressives" in the House are much more compassionate and smarter..

Progressives Support Shoring Up ACA Before Tackling Medicare For All

snip//

“I’m happy to support any provision that strengthens the ACA and plug some of the gaps that we’re seeing, particularly as it’s under assault by the president,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) told HuffPost on Wednesday. “I think it’s part of a longer-term vision, at least for me, towards guaranteeing ― truly guaranteeing ― health care for all Americans.”

Ocasio-Cortez said she understood prioritizing fixes to the Affordable Care Act. “Because we have a Republican Senate, a Republican president, and so the things that we have the ability to pass right now are pretty narrow,” she said, though she added she wanted hearings on Medicare for All and didn’t think single-payer solutions had been given enough attention from the Democratic caucus yet.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10142293852

Link to tweet

Link to tweet

[susanna]

218. Thank you so much, Cha.

It was three years ago all that happened; toughest time in my life. I have always been stoic, but I found a soft (very soft) side to me when it came to my sister. She is dearly missed, and she is never forgotten. And the family perseveres.

I want improvements to health care - who doesn't?

But I will always say the ACA was decent to my family when we needed it. Anyone not willing to defend it does not have my support at this time.

Shore ACA up; fix it as best we can. Then let's talk about MFA.

[Cha]

220. Exactly, susanna..

"Shore ACA up; fix it as best we can. Then let's talk about MFA."

You're not the susanna who lives in Hawaii are you?

[susanna]

222. No, I'm in Michigan. :)

I could only wish for Hawaii

[Cha]

227. Aha! I had to ask..

I used to see a "susanna" with a small "s" who posted on The Obama Diary all the time.

She was from the Big Island.

I live on Kauai.

[susanna]

231. I'm jealous!

Nah, I am just Rust Belt susanna lol.

But I am so happy there is another me somewhere warm

[Cha]

235. lol.. that's very

sweet.

I spent time in Michigan back in the day.. winter and summer.. Good Times!

[susanna]

245. It's a beautiful state.

I entertained leaving when I was a bit younger, but find myself happy here now. Perspective

Nice talking with you, Cha!

[Cha]

263. Nice talking to you, too,

susanna!

Btw.. it was Detroit back in the '60s.. I was visiting a boyfriend there, whom I met at the UofArizona, who played baseball.

[lapucelle]

230. Here are all the details, including summaries, the text of the comprehensive bill,

and the text of five stand alone bills.

One page summary of The Protecting Pre-Existing Conditions & Making Health Care More Affordable Act of 2019 :

https://energycommerce.house.gov/sites/democrats.energycommerce.house.gov/files/documents/Health%20Care%20Bill%20One%20Pager.pdf

Section by section summary of The Protecting Pre-Existing Conditions & Making Health Care More Affordable Act of 2019:

https://energycommerce.house.gov/sites/democrats.energycommerce.house.gov/files/documents/Health%20Care%20Bill%20Section%20by%20Section.pdf

Comprehensive bill: The Protecting Pre-Existing Conditions & Making Health Care More Affordable Act of 2019:

https://energycommerce.house.gov/sites/democrats.energycommerce.house.gov/files/documents/Health%20Care%20Bill%20Text.pdf

Stand alone bill: Short-Term, Limited Duration Insurance Rule Prohibition:

https://energycommerce.house.gov/sites/democrats.energycommerce.house.gov/files/documents/HR_1010_CASTOR_.pdf

Stand alone bill: Protecting Americans with Preexisting Conditions Act of 2019:

https://energycommerce.house.gov/sites/democrats.energycommerce.house.gov/files/documents/HR_986_KUSTER_.pdf

Stand alone bill: Expand Navigators’ Resources for Outreach, Learning, and Longevity Act of 2019:

https://energycommerce.house.gov/sites/democrats.energycommerce.house.gov/files/documents/Navigators.pdf

Stand alone bill: Marketing and Out-Reach Restoration to Empower Health Education Act of 2019:

https://energycommerce.house.gov/sites/democrats.energycommerce.house.gov/files/documents/HR_%20987_BLUNT%20ROCHESTER_.pdf

Stand alone bill: State Health Care Pre-mium Reduction Act:

https://energycommerce.house.gov/sites/democrats.energycommerce.house.gov/files/documents/Reinsurance.pdf

[Cha]

233. Mahalo, Ms Researcher!

Thank You, lapucelle!

[susanna]

266. Thank you, lapucelle...

Great information!

[pnwmom]

270. I am so very sorry about your sister -- and glad that the ACA gave you a little peace of mind.

I can't understand people who take Bernie's position, which seems incredibly selfish.

[susanna]

272. Thank you, pnwmom.

It was a blessing at the end to have that huge worry lifted from us so we could mourn in relative peace.

I did not realize what it meant to me until later.

[Gothmog]

243. From Prof Krugman

Link to tweet

?s=20

[Cha]

264. "..he really needs to walk this back, clearly and unambiguously."

Clearly.. Mahalo, Goth

[Maru Kitteh]

246. So when it comes time to actually HELP people and protect them he says NO! NOT PURE ENOUGH

He certainly doesn't have to worry about HIS healthcare, does he?

[Amimnoch]

253. I prefer progress over purity with no results myself.

I'd imagine those suffering from lack of or insufficient healthcare would agree.

Lucky for the Senator that he doesn't have to worry about such things.

[Cha]

265. Yeah, BS says he'll

"fight for" this "fight for" that..

But, he won't fight for those who are on Obamacare..

Link to tweet

The "progressives" in the House are much more compassionate and smarter..

Progressives Support Shoring Up ACA Before Tackling Medicare For All

snip//

“I’m happy to support any provision that strengthens the ACA and plug some of the gaps that we’re seeing, particularly as it’s under assault by the president,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) told HuffPost on Wednesday. “I think it’s part of a longer-term vision, at least for me, towards guaranteeing ― truly guaranteeing ― health care for all Americans.”

Ocasio-Cortez said she understood prioritizing fixes to the Affordable Care Act. “Because we have a Republican Senate, a Republican president, and so the things that we have the ability to pass right now are pretty narrow,” she said, though she added she wanted hearings on Medicare for All and didn’t think single-payer solutions had been given enough attention from the Democratic caucus yet.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10142293852

Link to tweet

Link to tweet

[ucrdem]

267. Fair weather friend.

And that's the polite version.


p.s.

[Gothmog]

271. From the Hoarse Whisperer

Link to tweet

[NurseJackie]

273. Every time this thread gets kicked to the top, it makes me angry all over again...

This Sanders answer whether he would support House Dem legislation to improve ACA is pretty interesting. He says "no" and says he doesn't support any incremental reforms, which is quite a departure from his record.

Every time this thread gets kicked to the top, it makes me angry all over again, and it makes me hate him even more for this.

I guess it must be nice and easy for anyone who's in the lucky ONE PERCENT... people who can afford to pay FULL PRICE for everything even if they were "uninsurable" because of a pre-existing condition.

It's easy to make impossible promises of instantaneous Medicare for All when the person making the promises isn't the person doing the suffering when the ACA is overturned or declared "unconstitutional".

It is absolutely UNCONSCIONABLE that anyone would want to play this CYNICAL game with the health and financial well-being of MILLIONS of vulnerable Americans.

In my opinion, THIS DISQUALIFIES him from being our party's nominee for president. He should just pack his bags and head back to one of his three houses and enjoy RETIREMENT.

The most vulnerable American people are ALREADY SUFFERING ENOUGH without any help from those who refuse to support the ACA and who refuse to strengthen it and PROTECT IT.

I'm so angry I could spit nails and breathe fire!