Politicub
Politicub's JournalWhy Sanders' Medicare for All approach is seen as a threat. A public option is a better way forward.
This is my story. It's not unlike millions of other people out there.
Job Lock, staying at a company because of insurance benefits, made me miserable and scared. The ACA fixed that. Bernie comes across as a threat to a better life that the ACA brings.
What I would like to say to Sanders is bring more people into the system as quickly as your can; Don't break what's working for millions of us.
I stayed on a great career path for more than twenty years, and had an enviable job. Yet I was so unhappy being there. I would come home drained and, over time, became more and more depressed and anxious.
Knowing that I would put me and my disabled husband at risk by not having insurance, I stayed at my job. That's until the breakdown happened. I found myself curled up on the floor and sobbing every day for more than two weeks. I couldn't do it anymore. I was broken.
The ACA was there to catch me, though. I was able to get a plan through the exchange and branch out on my own business using what I had learned. That was three years ago, and I've bought my insurance through the exchange ever since. Using your words, I have free agency.
More than 20 million Americans have insurance through the ACA. We only have 8 percent of the population to go for full insurance.
That why people like Bernie, who advocate a Medicare-for-all-or-bust approach bring back feelings of anxiety and dread. Don't get me wrong: I'm for universal, single-payer coverage. I disagree with Bernie, though, on how to get there. A public option is a bridge to get there since it builds off the ACA as a platform. The Medicaid portion needs fixing. And scaring people about losing health insurance through their job is a recipe for disaster. Some people like their job-provided coverage. It didn't work for me, though.
I want a system that covers everyone. It can be patchwork if need be, and can grow over time. And if it changes to Medicare for all one day, that's fantastic.
Oh, and my disabled husband finally won his disability case. He has Medicare now. And while I drool over the options in the guide to his open enrollment period, my benefits have been superior at times. My specialist co-pay is less, and the drug formulary is larger than his Medicare Advantage provider. He has a premium that comes off his disability income each month.
Sanders' plan is not Medicare. His approach is something else entirely; Sanders is only keeping the name.
Pete Buttigieg on How He Plans to Win the Democratic Nomination and Defeat Trump
Mayor Pete is now. Mayor Pete is the future. Mayor Pete connects with people from all walks of life.
And most of all, he is a role model to the millions of GLBT kids out there who need to know that anything is possible in America.
When I was coming of age in the 80s, I didn't have a gay role model. To be sure, there were some out there, fighting on the front lines for AIDS research and doing the hard work of winning rights. But the mainstream media didn't write about them. Invisible, they were not featured on TV. I did not know about them, and thought I was alone.
I well up with tears when I think about how far the gay community has come, and how much further we have to go. And, I'm so happy that kids today -- all kids, not just the ones who feel queer -- see someone running for president who is a little bit like themselves.
This is a great article about Mayor Pete's strategy for beating Trump. I want to hear about strategy from each of the dem nominees, and Mayor Pete has set a high bar for them to clear.
Pete Buttigieg on How He Plans to Win the Democratic Nomination and Defeat Trump
The surging Presidential hopeful explains a career that has included Navy service, two terms as a small-city mayor, and coming out as gay.
During an exit interview in November, 2016, just weeks after the election, David Remnick asked President Obama who the future leaders of the Democratic Party might be, and who could realistically challenge Trump in 2020. A surprising figure Obama named was Pete Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, who, at the time, was only thirty-four. In recent weeks, Buttigieg’s profile has risen dramatically, and he has collected campaign donations at a surprising clip, considering that he lacks the national profile of a senator or governor.
The field of Democrats running for President is enormous, but Buttigieg stands out for a few reasons. He’s a Navy veteran, born and raised in the city he governs, so you could say that he has real heartland credibility. He’s also the first gay Presidential candidate with a real shot at the nomination. Buttigieg is a millennial who graduated high school in the year 2000 and, if elected, would be the youngest President by far. In a conversation with Remnick for The New Yorker Radio Hour, the Democratic hopeful discussed his experience as a small-city mayor, a Navy officer, and a gay man...
From The New Yorker @ https://www.newyorker.com/news/the-new-yorker-interview/pete-buttigieg-plans-win-democratic-presidential-nomination-defeat-trump
Mayor Pete is important in so many ways.
Profile Information
Gender: Do not displayMember since: 2003 before July 6th
Number of posts: 12,165
