'Choose Medicare Act,' the latest Democratic health care proposal
The proposal would allow people covered by ACA or employer-provided plans to instead choose a new Medicare-based insurance plan.
Medicare may not be popular with Republicans, but Democrats are proposing yet another riff on the health care program as the party heads closer to common ground on single-payer.
The Hill reports that this latest iteration, called the Choose Medicare Act, was introduced by Sens. Chris Murphy, D-CT, and Jeff Merkley, D-OR. While it doesn’t go as far as the bill proposed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-VT, it instead keeps private insurance going—although it would allow people covered by Affordable Care Act plans and plans provided by their employers to instead choose the new Medicare-based insurance plan if they want.
The Huffington Post reports that the proposed plan, termed Medicare Part E, would not only eventually cover most working-age people who don’t qualify for Medicaid, but also provide something for senior citizens: a cap on out-of-pocket spending. In addition, it would provide coverage of pediatric services.
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Says the report, “It would have to finance itself, with premiums from beneficiaries covering outlays, just like a private insurance plan would.” But it would have some of Medicare’s efficiencies to help it along—among them, paying less for services than does commercial coverage. It would also be easier to get, with more generous tax credits than are currently available under the ACA and that are available to people with higher incomes.
While Merkley is a cosigner on Sanders’ bill—one of the 16 who signed on last September—Murphy is not. He doesn’t support mandating a move to a Medicare plan and thinks this bill will spur people to choose a Medicare plan on their own. In the report, Murphy is quoted saying, “I think this is a way for the market to decide whether a Medicare plan or private sector plans are better for businesses and families,” adding that he expects most Americans “would choose to buy a Medicare plan” in the end.
Among the Merkley-Murphy bill’s cosponsors are Sens. Kamala Harris, D-CA; Cory Booker, D-NJ (both also cosponsor Sanders’ bill); Tammy Baldwin, D-WI; Brian Schatz, D-HI; Jeanne Shaheen, D-NH; Richard Blumenthal, D-CT; Martin Heinrich, D-NM; and Tom Udall, D-NM.