Elizabeth Warren has finally laid out a detailed plan for providing universal, government-funded health care to the entire country, a signature issue for her presidential campaign.
Beyond the political pitfalls, talking about universal health coverage plans won't result in any immediate change, whereas Trump's strategy can be adopted quickly.
As a public health and military doctor, health care isn't just a political talking point for me and my colleagues; inaction in Washington has real impacts on the patients we care for.
In addition to the financing for the $20.5 trillion price tag on Warren's plan, which has gotten the lion's share of media attention, there are other - perhaps even more insidious - costs to patients under "Medicare for All": Free may actually mean longer wait times for needed services, as it does for Canadians on their government-funded plan, and the closure of beloved community hospitals unable to subsist on government reimbursement rates.
Trump's version of Medicare for All - privatized Medicare for those willing to pay for it - is like one-stop-shopping for all your health care needs rather than expanding a large government-run health system that's far less agile: Prescription drugs, vision, dental, gym memberships and, in some cases, a heavily discounted Apple Watch are all included if an enrollee is willing to accept fewer options in the doctors they can see for care.
Related These plans are considered a part of Medicare because the government pays authorized private health insurance companies to administer them to enrollees, instead of running the program itself.
Not coincidentally, a start-up health insurer recently announced it will provide the first Medicare Advantage plan that covers the purchase of an Apple Watch.
https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/elizabeth-warren-vs-donald-trump-health-care-his-better-politics-ncna1075376
Beyond the political pitfalls, talking about universal health coverage plans won't result in any immediate change, whereas Trump's strategy can be adopted quickly.
As a public health and military doctor, health care isn't just a political talking point for me and my colleagues; inaction in Washington has real impacts on the patients we care for.
In addition to the financing for the $20.5 trillion price tag on Warren's plan, which has gotten the lion's share of media attention, there are other - perhaps even more insidious - costs to patients under "Medicare for All": Free may actually mean longer wait times for needed services, as it does for Canadians on their government-funded plan, and the closure of beloved community hospitals unable to subsist on government reimbursement rates.
Trump's version of Medicare for All - privatized Medicare for those willing to pay for it - is like one-stop-shopping for all your health care needs rather than expanding a large government-run health system that's far less agile: Prescription drugs, vision, dental, gym memberships and, in some cases, a heavily discounted Apple Watch are all included if an enrollee is willing to accept fewer options in the doctors they can see for care.
Related These plans are considered a part of Medicare because the government pays authorized private health insurance companies to administer them to enrollees, instead of running the program itself.
Not coincidentally, a start-up health insurer recently announced it will provide the first Medicare Advantage plan that covers the purchase of an Apple Watch.
https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/elizabeth-warren-vs-donald-trump-health-care-his-better-politics-ncna1075376
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