Medicare For All: What Does it Actually Mean?

Medicare for All has become wildly popular among Democrats running for office these days. But what does that mean exactly? It's complicated, if you can believe that. Does this include universal coverage? What happens to employer-based insurance? We take a close look at some of the questions surrounding this issue.

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[healthcaretriage]

FYI we've got a bunch of links in the description for further reading and watching!

[avnerkam]

I zoned out when you focused on employer-based insurance, as if we are stuck in the 20th century. The connection between health insurance and employment was always questionable, but now it is visibly out of line with the economy of independent contractors and multiple jobs.

[dennis-qubs]

It barbaric that America let's some of its citizens go without health care while it's the wealthiest nation in the world!

[krellend]

Medicare is a single payer. An expansion of health insurance is NOT "Medicare for All." Medicare for All would mean getting private insurance out of the primary care business.

[lovely_deja]

I pay almost 150 every 2 weeks and its the cheapest plan under Aetna with my job. Just for me and my daughter. THATS EXPENSIVE and i have a 8, 000 deductiable

[intricatic]

I always thought medicare for all meant medicare... for all. Seems pretty self-explanatory to me.

[crmessonk]

Thank you media does a crapy job talking about this.

[aliensinnoh]

The absolute minimum, and I mean absolute, is a public option that anyone can buy into. Just lowering the eligibility age of Medicare to 50 would actually be WORSE than doing nothing at all. Part of the problem in the policy fight right now is old people covered under Medicare who love it but worry expanding it to everyone would lower their own standard of care. We do not need another 15 years worth of people lumped onto the "I got mine, fuck you" basket.

[dickiller]

I’m Russian, we have single-payer system, and we have 13% income tax. We have incredible access and super low costs. But I can’t say that we have very good quality.

[scottchristy]

since we already pay for it... it already comes out of our pay check. it makes sense that we should be able to use it.

[computertooter]

This is how you define Medicare For All: HR 1384. That's what we are backing. It means no premiums, co-pays nor deductibles. No networks, you get to pick your doctor. No sign-up period, you are automatically enrolled when you are born and covered for everything until you die. No costing out of the system. Currently the government pays the private insurance companies the difference between what they charge you in the exchange and what they'd charge you out of the exchange. In 2019 that came to $373 BILLION. That is what they are getting on top of the $1 TRILLION profit they rake in every year. By 2026 the government will be paying out $1 TRILLION a year to the private insurance cartel. If the government cannot afford Medicare For All how in the hell can they afford to pay the private insurance companies hundred of billions a year? Who is paying for that? We are with our lives.

The truth of the matter is the US is monetarily sovereign. That's a fact. It can never run out of the dollars it alone is allowed to issue nor can it ever be forced into bankruptcy like we can. Economists, such as Dr. Stephanie Kelton, Warren Mosler, Bill Mitchell and others have stated that transitioning to a single-payer system from the selective system we now have will be a deflationary event. While the new system will be able to absorb some of the workers from the insurance companies, it will not be able to put all of them to work due to the efficiencies of a single-payer system over one where you have to deal with multiple insurance companies. That means less overhead for hospitals and doctor offices. It also means no new taxes because that is not warranted in deflationary times. Doctors will spend little or no time arguing with a nurse over the phone whether or not you really need the test he/she ordered. It lets doctors be doctors and do what they are meant to do which is take care of you.

The health insurance companies are trying to down play the benefits of HR 1384 and can you blame them? They see the hand writing on the wall. Their reign of terror will come to an end. They are responsible for well over 70, 000 deaths a year. They are the reason medical debt is still the #1 reason people declare bankruptcy and often times lose everything they own. How many thousands of people are living on the streets because of them? Why aren't these issues ever discussed in videos like this one?

I urge everyone to read HR 1384. It is clear in what it will cover and how it will be implemented. Can you imagine a world where if you get sick you can just go see your doctor without worry about how you are going to pay for it? Or whether or not that emergency room visit will cost you your house? Or being able to fill your prescriptions without first taking out a loan? I can. It's called Medicare For All and it is totally possible. Accept no compromise.

[HeyThatsInteresting]

People care about a “choice” of doctor or hospital. Almost nobody gives a flying fart what “choice” of plan they get. They just want a plan with full coverage.

[bydesign]

I find it amazing that people can be convinced its a bad idea to try and cover everyones healthcare.

[Darkred]

My main issue with this 'Medicare for All' policy is that no politician ever talks about the bloated bureaucratic mess that is the healthcare system and by extension the educational system and where I feel most of the money goes instead of hospitals and schools. I would like to see that addressed first because to me it seems politicians just want to pump more money into the system instead of addressing the main culprit for a substantial increase in healthcare and educational costs.

[johnkelly]

The problem with these videos about the ideas for health care insurance is, when they are talking about the increased taxes, all (including you) don't emphasize that there would be no premiums paid. Nor do any that I have seen actually compare the real cost per person in these instances - how much premiums vs. how much taxes per person.

[colinjones]

Future dentist here - this channel's content is brilliant & eye-opening, thank you!

[jasonruggles]

It would be great if the richest country in the world if we would catch up to the rest of the world since we spend twice as much with worse outcomes. Too bad we have the most deaths of citizens because of lack of health care. Not to mention our number one reason for bankruptcy is health care

[canadian]

I don't know about anyone else, but I felt more confused at the end of the video than when it began.

[GaviLazan]

Can you do a video on the Israeli health care system and how it compares to other national/universal health care systems?

[Dustverky]

Most of those people who _love_ their employer based insurance really haven't used it yet.