By William Hsiao, Richard M. Scheffler | Published August 11, 2022 in Health Affairs Forefront | Link to Full Article
The inequitable, ineffective, and wasteful health care system in the US has been extensively analyzed and documented. In the last presidential election cycle, Senator Bernie Sanders (D-VT) proposed a single-payer system, Medicare for All, to solve our health care system deficiencies. He aroused wide public support for it. In early 2022, Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) led 120 congresspersons to introduce the Medicar for All Act of 2022 in the House (H.R. 1976). However, the passage of any federal single-payer bill seems dim because of the strong opposition of powerful vested interest groups and lack of a political majority. Hence, it’s more likely that states may take major initiatives in the intermediate future. What can states do?