Health care will be job one
by digby
A new Kaiser Foundation poll shows a large majority for the progressive health care positions:
This month’s KFF Health Tracking Poll continues to find majority support (driven by Democrats and independents) for the federal government doing more to help provide health insurance for more Americans. One way for lawmakers to expand coverage is by broadening the role of public programs. Nearly six in ten (56 percent) favor a national Medicare-for-all plan, but overall net favorability towards such a plan ranges as high as +45 and as low as -44 after people hear common arguments about this proposal.
Larger majorities of the public favor more incremental changes to the health care system such as a Medicare buy-in plan for adults between the ages of 50 and 64 (77 percent), a Medicaid buy-in plan for individuals who don’t receive health coverage through their employer (75 percent), and an optional program similar to Medicare for those who want it (74 percent). Both the Medicare buy-in plan and Medicaid buy-in plan also garner majority support from Republicans (69 percent and 64 percent).
Moving forward, half of Democrats would rather see the new Democratic majority in the U.S. House of Representatives focus their efforts on improving and protecting the ACA (51 percent), while about four in ten want them to focus on passing a national Medicare-for-all plan (38 percent).
Democrats and their Independent leaners want this problem dealt with once and for all. If Democrats win in 2020, they will have a mandate to do it.
I will just say that I think the Obamacare program was probably a necessary step in the evolution of this issue. Changing this huge sector of our society in such a fundamental way, partiularly with a vicious opposition, often takes several steps. But it will happen one way or the other. It has to.
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