The Center for American Progress, a progressive think tank, released a plan this week that comes very close to a single-payer health care, a system funded and administered by the government that eliminates private insurers.
The CAP plan, called “Medicare Extra for All,” would provide government-run health insurance for everyone, though people would still have the option of obtaining coverage from an employer. Many lawmakers, including Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), are backing the plan.
But not everyone is a fan. The Heritage Foundation’s Robert Moffit said the CAP plan would mean “more power for politicians and bureaucrats to prescribe, define, limit or control what ordinary Americans could access from the health-care system.”
So is “Medicare for All” the solution for a universal health care? We weigh the pros and cons.
Guests:
Michelle Faust, KPCC’s health care reporter who’s been covering the single payer debate in California
Topher Spiro, vice president of health policy and senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, a Washington, D.C.-based progressive think tank
Robert E. Moffit, senior fellow at The Heritage Foundation’s Center for Health Policy Studies, a Washington, D.C.-based conservative public policy think tank
Sally Pipes, president and CEO and Thomas W. Smith fellow in Health Care Policy at the Pacific Research Institute