Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and the progressive Left want to have single-payer, or Medicare for All, which is the poll-tested term, for the country. They’ve been waiting years to make this push. They’re getting more aggressive in terms of advocacy, with some calling for it to be a litmus test when it comes to elections. Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC), chair of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, endured some questions about this at a recent town hall event, where he said if the numbers work—he’d consider it. And by that, he means efficiently taxing the wealthy 100 percent to fund the program, knowing you can’t. Progressives think soaking the rich can solve this, everyone else who is sane knows otherwise. MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough made the point that there is no way to fund this left wing venture though more taxes on the rich on Tuesday:
There are not enough taxes to be levied against the top 1 percent or the top 10 percent that would fund ‘Medicare for All. Furthermore, there aren’t enough taxes out there to raise, to actually keep Medicare going over the next 20-25 years. We are in a deep hole of debt. And just saying ‘hey, let’s just raise taxes more,’ the numbers don’t add up. They just don’t add up. Ask the CBO. Ask, you can ask any debt committee.”
The staggering cost of the program should it become law is estimated at $32 trillion. Even Paul Ryan’s progressive challenger would commit to such tax increases. Also, The Washington Post noted the astronomical costs, adding the tradeoff will be higher taxes for more coverage, but less access to quality care, specialty doctors, and certain treatments. As for a sitting U.S. Senator, besides Sanders, Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said that all options are on the table concerning health care. Claire McCaskill (D-MO), who was opposed to the measure in April, now, says she’ll consider it.
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