As President Donald Trump postpones unveiling his supposed plan to tackle soaring US healthcare costs—reportedly after pushback from congressional Republicans—Medicare for All advocates have renewed calls for shifting to a single-payer system. “Republicans have a million ideas regarding healthcare. Except one,” Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who caucuses with Democrats, said on social media Monday afternoon. “They will never acknowledge that healthcare is a human right—to be guaranteed to ALL.”
The union National Nurses United also called for Medicare for All on Monday, pointing to a recent West Health/Gallup poll that found 47% of US adults are worried they won’t be able to afford healthcare next year, the highest level since they began tracking in 2021.
“The urgency around this is real,” West Health president Timothy Lash told NBC News. “When you look at the economic strain that is on families right now, even if healthcare prices didn’t rise, the costs are rising elsewhere, which only exacerbates the problem.”
Of course, when it comes to messaging, Republicans face a major problem on healthcare: despite years spent trying to dismantle Obamacare, the GOP still doesn’t have a replacement plan. And with premiums expected to skyrocket once Obamacare expires at the end of the year, the lack of any viable alternative leaves the GOP in a politically disastrous position as well as a bleak outlook for them as they head into next year’s midterms.
RELATED: Does Anyone Even Remember Trump Once Favored Medicare for All?
