Republicans, Democrats, 'SNL' attack Warren's U.S. 'Medicare for All' plan

[webfact]

Republicans, Democrats, 'SNL' attack Warren's U.S. 'Medicare for All' plan

By Heather Timmons

 

FILE PHOTO: Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) speaks during an event to introduce the "Medicare for All Act of 2017" on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., September 13, 2017. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senator Elizabeth Warren's $20.5 trillion plan to provide healthcare for all Americans was attacked and mocked over the weekend by Democrats, Republicans, and "Saturday Night Live," the long-running New York comedy show.

 

The 20-page "Medicare for All" plan, which Warren's 2020 presidential campaign released on Friday, calls for cuts in defence spending and passing immigration reform to increase tax revenue from newly legal Americans, two steps that would face an uphill battle in Congress.

 

It is also funded by cost-cutting, business contributions, and new taxes on Wall Street, big businesses and wealthy individuals, which each carry their own challenges.

 

Warren's sweeping healthcare overhaul would replace private health insurance, including employer-sponsored plans, with full government-sponsored coverage, and individuals would no longer have to pay premiums, deductibles, co-pays or other out-of-pocket costs.

 

It would extend Medicare, the U.S. government's health insurance programme for people 65 years and older and the disabled, to cover all Americans.

Warren has said it would provide healthcare cover for some 27 million Americans who are currently uninsured and that the taxes would not affect the middle class.

 

However, former vice president Joe Biden, another Democratic challenger in the 2020 race, accused Warren of lying to voters about not taxing anyone but billionaires to play for the plan.

 

"Her plan would create a new tax on employers of almost $9 trillion that would come out of workers' pockets, a new financial transaction tax that would impact investments held by middle class Americans, and a new capital gains tax that would affect far more people than she stated tonight," Biden said in a Nov. 2 statement.

 

Pete Buttigieg, the South Bend, Indiana mayor who is also running in the 2020 race, said the plan's total elimination of private insurance was too inflexible on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday morning. "This my way or the highway idea, that either you're for kicking everybody off their private plans in four years or you're for business as usual, it's just not true," Buttigieg said.

 

Bernie Sanders, the Vermont senator and presidential candidate who is also running on a pledge of providing 'Medicare for All,' told ABC News his approach "will be much more progressive in terms of protecting the financial well-being of middle income families." Sanders' campaign has not yet released a detailed plan explaining how he would fund Medicare for All.

 

Rahm Emanuel, who was chief of staff for former Democrat President Barack Obama and has previously called Medicare for All a "pipe dream," said Warren's campaign would be forever associated with the idea in the future, to its detriment.

 

"This was Bernie's idea, and now she owns the idea," he said. "This issue is not going to happen, and it is not the way you argue healthcare," he said.

The Republican National Committee called the price tag of Warren's approach to healthcare "staggering" on Twitter on Sunday.

 

"Elizabeth Warren's policies are so radical, the math doesn't even come close," Steve Bannon, former adviser to President Donald Trump, said on Fox News Sunday morning.

 

Warren's plan was the focus of a nearly eight-minute long opening skit on "Saturday Night Live" that was widely circulated on social media afterward.

 

"When Bernie was talking Medicare for All, everybody was like 'Oh cool' and then they turned to me and they said 'Fix it, Mom," said actor Kate McKinnon, who plays Warren as a lusty policy wonk on the show. "I'll do it because that's what Moms do."

 

To fund the plan, "we're going to cut military spending, so... immediately dead in the water," the actor said. The plan also requires that the United States tax billionaires like Jeff Bezos and big banks, she explained. "All we have to do is convince J.P. Morgan to operate like a non-profit," McKinnon said.

 

(Reporting by Heather Timmons, Additional reporting by Doina Chiacu and Andrea Shalal, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-11-04

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[Tug]

I watched the skit it was fun!

[Crazy Alex]

It's a ridiculous plan. It's unsustainable. It's not going to cut costs. It won't make it through both Houses of Congress. It is a complete shame designed to fool low-information voters who aren't very good at math or logical thinking.

[blazes]

Medicare for all is simply a civilised step in modern society.  It should not even be open to debate, so obvious is the need for this.

 

How to pay?  Why shouldn't Americans pay in the same way citizens of other countries do, by paying a monthly premium according to your income.

 

[Eric Loh]

So what at stake America? Life expectancy is worse off than similar rich nations. The gross inequality of death in America is shocking. Richest Americans live 10-15 years longer than the poorest. Infant mortality is still relatively high. Living in America is increasingly looking like a health risk and it is the fault of the medical health care system or rather a non-comprehensive UHC. Americans should move mountains and accept pains to have a UHC like in Norway or even Singapore and not listen to bickering politicians who only trying to score political points. 

[ncc1701d]

pete buttigieg‘s plan for health care sounds the most rational

[Jonnapat]

I could never understand why the ""richest nation on earth"" would wish to deny health care to all of its citizens. 

Or are they scared of being labelled ""socialist ""?

[Jingthing]

6 minutes ago, Jonnapat said:

I could never understand why the ""richest nation on earth"" would wish to deny health care to all of its citizens. 

Or are they scared of being labelled ""socialist ""?

Yes to both. Yes it's nauseating and nothing "great" about it at all! 

[kwonitoy]

 

Canada: $5,782 per person; 10.4% of GDP; 70% public/30% private

United States: $11,916 per person; 16.9% of GDP; 49% public/51% private

France: $5,677 per person; 11.1% of GDP; 79% public/21% private

Germany: $6,709 per person; 11.2% of GDP; 84% public/16% private

Sweden: $6,601 per person; 11.0% of GDP; 84% public/16% private

Netherlands: $6,639 per person; 10.7% of GDP; 81% public/19% private

Australia: $5,631 per person; 9.4% of GDP; 67% public/33% private

New Zealand: $4,443 per person; 9.3% of GDP; 80% public/20% private

United Kingdom: $5,170 per person; 9.9% of GDP; 80% public/20% private

 

Most money spent on health care, "Merica"

Only country above without universal coverage "Merica"

There is no extra money required, just in its allocation

Makes you wonder where it all goes 

Edited November 4, 2019 by kwonitoy

[The Theory]

Fooling voters again with another foolish plan that in fact won’t become anything close to what she promises now in the end. Just another Obama plan that caused people lose their full jobs and ended up to part-time jobs since the employers did not want to pay for health insurance of employees, especially smaller companies. ????

Edited November 4, 2019 by The Theory

[Crazy Alex]

11 hours ago, blazes said:

Medicare for all is simply a civilised step in modern society.  It should not even be open to debate, so obvious is the need for this.

 

How to pay?  Why shouldn't Americans pay in the same way citizens of other countries do, by paying a monthly premium according to your income.

 

There can literally be no Medicare-for-all, as Medicare recipients pay into the system for decades before becoming eligible. And then they still have to pay premiums and get additional coverage after that.

 

For example, a typical Medicare recipient will have paid tens of thousands of dollars into the system over a period of decades. You can't just triple the amount of Medicare recipients, with the new additions having put little to nothing into the system, and just babble about how it's Medicare-for-all. Once it becomes "for-all", it ceases being Medicare as any rational, informed person knows it. It would be almost as silly as if I were to declare myself a carnivorous vegetarian.

[Crazy Alex]

8 hours ago, kwonitoy said:

 

Canada: $5,782 per person; 10.4% of GDP; 70% public/30% private

United States: $11,916 per person; 16.9% of GDP; 49% public/51% private

France: $5,677 per person; 11.1% of GDP; 79% public/21% private

Germany: $6,709 per person; 11.2% of GDP; 84% public/16% private

Sweden: $6,601 per person; 11.0% of GDP; 84% public/16% private

Netherlands: $6,639 per person; 10.7% of GDP; 81% public/19% private

Australia: $5,631 per person; 9.4% of GDP; 67% public/33% private

New Zealand: $4,443 per person; 9.3% of GDP; 80% public/20% private

United Kingdom: $5,170 per person; 9.9% of GDP; 80% public/20% private

 

Most money spent on health care, "Merica"

Only country above without universal coverage "Merica"

There is no extra money required, just in its allocation

Makes you wonder where it all goes 

Great question! So wouldn't rational people want to find out where it all goes before simply handing over yet even more power to the very government that has screwed up every major health care venture it has engaged in? If a mechanic screws up fixing the brakes on your car, do you return to him when your engine needs an overhaul?

[Cryingdick]

Warren is so uninformed that she thinks people who work in the medical insurance industry will simply switch to automobile and house insurance. lol At least now that the herd is being culled (RIP Beto) we finally get to focus on Warren's agenda. 

 

 

 

 

[sirineou]

12 minutes ago, Cryingdick said:

Warren is so uninformed that she thinks people who work in the medical insurance industry will simply switch to automobile and house insurance. lol At least now that the herd is being culled (RIP Beto) we finally get to focus on Warren's agenda. 

 

 

 

 

So we are more concerned where these private insurance employees would get jobs than we are about Americans having affordable viable  health insurance?????

They will get jobs the same place the rest of americans do. 

[Cryingdick]

2 minutes ago, sirineou said:

So we are more concerned where these private insurance employees would get jobs than we are about Americans having affordable viable  health insurance?????

They will get jobs the same place the rest of americans do. 

 

You seem to get it about as much as Liz does....

[sirineou]

1 minute ago, Cryingdick said:

 

You seem to get it about as much as Liz does....

and IMO that's a good thing , now only if you guys would get it, we can move forward having all americans covered lice every other developed country.

By the way, I have the best insurance money can buy through my trade union, but I don't want to live in a health ghetto ,Not only  I have compassion for my fellow citizens. I don't like my taxes going towards subsidising a private insurance industry and lining the pockets of fat cats.

[Cryingdick]

11 minutes ago, sirineou said:

and IMO that's a good thing , now only if you guys would get it, we can move forward having all americans covered lice every other developed country.

By the way, I have the best insurance money can buy through my trade union, but I don't want to live in a health ghetto ,Not only  I have compassion for my fellow citizens. I don't like my taxes going towards subsidising a private insurance industry and lining the pockets of fat cats.

 

Her plan simply isn't feasible. She is even counting money that doesn't yet exist. Take $400 million she thinks will come from illegal immigrants if they start paying. There are a lot of ifs and we haven't even gotten to her climate plans yet. 

 

She says no middle class person will pay a single penny in taxes. However she wants a tax on every financial transaction so she is already lying. What libs don't get is maybe some of us would be on board with it if it weren't such a preposterously, farcical, fantasy. 

 

Going to love hear her come into Pennsylvania, Ohio and similar places telling people she is going to ban fracking. A couple million jobs here and a couple million there lost and her health plan doesn't have the numbers. Hacking off more than 20% of the economy is going to make the numbers differ. You can't count todays money because the numbers will change drastically. 

 

Not too mention the fact none of what she says will ever happen anyway. Even if she wins she needs the house and senate or all of this is simply not happening. Her plans go ten years out. Even if she got everything passed and won two terms it isn't happening. This is all just make believe.

 

She should try to remember to win she needs to run a state by state campaign and not a national one. Her ideas are going to almost ensure Ohio and PA go Trump.

Edited November 4, 2019 by Cryingdick

[Cryingdick]

Oh and to stay on topic yes that skit was funny because it isn't far from the truth.

[sirineou]

8 minutes ago, Cryingdick said:

 

Her plan simply isn't feasible. She is even counting money that doesn't yet exist. Take $400 million she thinks will come from illegal immigrants if they start paying. There are a lot of ifs and we haven't even gotten to her climate plans yet. 

 

She says no middle class person will pay a single penny in taxes. However she wants a tax on every financial transaction so she is already lying. What libs don't get is maybe some of us would be on board with it if it weren't such a preposterously, farcical, fantasy. 

 

Going to love hear her come into Pennsylvania, Ohio and similar places telling people she is going to ban fracking. A couple million jobs here and a couple million there lost and her health plan doesn't have the numbers. Hacking off more than 20% of the economy is going to make the numbers differ. You can't count todays money because the numbers will change drastically. 

 

Not too mention the fact none of what she says will ever happen anyway. Even if she wins she needs the house and senate or all of this is simply not happening. Her plans go ten years out. Even if she got everything passed and won two terms it isn't happening. This is all just make believe.

 

She should try to remember to win she needs to run a state by state campaign and not a national one. Her ideas are going to almost ensure Ohio and PA go Trump.

Her plan is just as feasible as it is in any other country that provides similar plans.

She has never said that taxes will not be increased in the middle class. Listen to everything she has said and find just one quote where she says  that taxes will not be increased for the middle class,

 She is too smart to say that, I hope smart is aqua;ity you look for on a president.

She said that 'Costs will not increase for the middle class"

There is a big difference between taxes and costs.

  Think about this logically. If a middle class person pays $10,000 a year for medical insurance now, would it be fair that under her plan they pay nothing? I am sure you will agree that it would be unfair. 

 So Under her plan they  will pay $7,000 (I am making up numbers for illustration purposes), But now instead of paying it to the private insurance companies, they will pay it to the government.

  How? in the form of higher taxes, but since they paid $10,000 before for health insurance and now they pay  $7,000  , so their "COSTS" will go down by $3000. 

Why doesn't she say middle class tax will go Up? because she know it will be taken out of context, and she will be bludgeoned over the head with the soundbite. "taxes will go up for the middle class" and most good people like you busy with  jobs , family and life, will never hear the rest of the explanations as described above.

I f you can remember anything , remember this, Affective propagande is not in what you are being told, what you are being told has to be right. Effective propaganda is in what you are not being told'

And both sides engage in it. So always ask yourself, 

" what am I not being told"

 

 

[Cryingdick]

She said not a single penny... maybe Mexico will pay for it...

 

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/penny-warren-offers-plan-pay-medicare-promising-hike/story?id=66678330

 

After months of questions and attacks from opponents, 2020 candidate Elizabeth Warren released a plan on Friday that addressed funding for "Medicare for All" with a promise not to raise a single penny in middle class taxes, an attempt to plug a growing hole in her narrative as the candidate who has a plan for everything except for funding health care.

 

Bernie was honest about the middle class paying Warren isn't. Also again this is all fantasy land. She needs bi-partisan support and the GOP is going to love her about as much as the dems love Trump. She has no way to make any of this happen.

[EVENKEEL]

11 minutes ago, sirineou said:

Her plan is just as feasible as it is in any other country that provides similar plans.

She has never said that taxes will not be increased in the middle class. Listen to everything she has said and find just one quote where she says  that taxes will not be increased for the middle class,

 She is too smart to say that, I hope smart is aqua;ity you look for on a president.

She said that 'Costs will not increase for the middle class"

There is a big difference between taxes and costs.

  Think about this logically. If a middle class person pays $10,000 a year for medical insurance now, would it be fair that under her plan they pay nothing? I am sure you will agree that it would be unfair. 

 So Under her plan they  will pay $7,000 (I am making up numbers for illustration purposes), But now instead of paying it to the private insurance companies, they will pay it to the government.

  How? in the form of higher taxes, but since they paid $10,000 before for health insurance and now they pay  $7,000  , so their "COSTS" will go down by $3000. 

Why doesn't she say middle class tax will go Up? because she know it will be taken out of context, and she will be bludgeoned over the head with the soundbite. "taxes will go up for the middle class" and most good people like you busy with  jobs , family and life, will never hear the rest of the explanations as described above.

I f you can remember anything , remember this, Affective propagande is not in what you are being told, what you are being told has to be right. Effective propaganda is in what you are not being told'

And both sides engage in it. So always ask yourself, 

" what am I not being told"

 

 

I'm almost certain I heard her utter the words "taxes for middle class will not increase"

I pay $230/mo for Blue Cross/Blue Shield which I can use when I retire in Thailand in one month. $2800/yr is not even close to the $10,000 figure being thrown around. And you would expect me to go along with this nonsense warren is trying to sell.

 

How can the words "yes your taxes will increase" be taken out of context?

[sirineou]

5 minutes ago, EVENKEEL said:

I'm almost certain I heard her utter the words "taxes for middle class will not increase"

I pay $230/mo for Blue Cross/Blue Shield which I can use when I retire in Thailand in one month. $2800/yr is not even close to the $10,000 figure being thrown around. And you would expect me to go along with this nonsense warren is trying to sell.

 

How can the words "yes your taxes will increase" be taken out of context?

"Sample quote for family: A man and a woman aged 35 with two kids aged 3 and 7: $1,240/month

Sample quote for a married couple: Aged 45-50, no pre-existing conditions: $725/month

Sample quote for an individual man or woman: Aged 45-50, no pre-existing conditions: $465/month"

https://www.toptenreviews.com/blue-cross-blue-shield-health-insurance-review

Average cost for a Family is 1,240 (see above) and there are 12 months in a year so 1249x12=$14,880

 

[Crazy Alex]

1 hour ago, sirineou said:

So we are more concerned where these private insurance employees would get jobs than we are about Americans having affordable viable  health insurance?????

They will get jobs the same place the rest of americans do. 

Government has failed at reducing costs. Initial Medicare cost overruns were 750%. Obamacare RAISED premiums when it was supposed to LOWER them. Why on Earth would you believe they'll get it right this time?

 

How about we debate Medicare for all with facts and logic?

[Cryingdick]

29 minutes ago, EVENKEEL said:

I'm almost certain I heard her utter the words "taxes for middle class will not increase"

I pay $230/mo for Blue Cross/Blue Shield which I can use when I retire in Thailand in one month. $2800/yr is not even close to the $10,000 figure being thrown around. And you would expect me to go along with this nonsense warren is trying to sell.

 

How can the words "yes your taxes will increase" be taken out of context?

 

She said it wouldn't rise by a single penny. I am not going to sift through youtube to dig up the clip but she said it that way exactly. 

[Cryingdick]

2 minutes ago, Crazy Alex said:

Government has failed at reducing costs. Initial Medicare cost overruns were 750%. Obamacare RAISED premiums when it was supposed to LOWER them. Why on Earth would you believe they'll get it right this time?

 

How about we debate Medicare for all with facts and logic?

 

The thing is also that this is just one of her promises. She also wants to forgive all college debt, make college free, extend healthcare to illegals and ban fracking. None of this will ever happen. At best you will just have 4 years of deadlock. 

 

The sooner she gets the nomination the better so there is only one candidate to go after. 

[sirineou]

20 minutes ago, Crazy Alex said:

Government has failed at reducing costs. Initial Medicare cost overruns were 750%. Obamacare RAISED premiums when it was supposed to LOWER them. Why on Earth would you believe they'll get it right this time?

 

How about we debate Medicare for all with facts and logic?

Why is it that governments in other countries can do it, but our government can't?

 

[Cryingdick]

3 minutes ago, sirineou said:

Why is it that governments in other countries can do it, but our government can't?

 

 

Look at the goon squads we have on both sides of the aisle.

[sirineou]

1 minute ago, Cryingdick said:

 

Look at the goon squads we have on both sides of the aisle.

So you are saying that other countries officials are superior,  Or ours are inferior? 

[Cryingdick]

4 minutes ago, sirineou said:

So you are saying that other countries officials are superior,  Or ours are inferior? 

 

Was going to edit to elaborate further but decided against it.

Edited November 4, 2019 by Cryingdick

[EVENKEEL]

6 hours ago, sirineou said:

"Sample quote for family: A man and a woman aged 35 with two kids aged 3 and 7: $1,240/month

Sample quote for a married couple: Aged 45-50, no pre-existing conditions: $725/month

Sample quote for an individual man or woman: Aged 45-50, no pre-existing conditions: $465/month"

https://www.toptenreviews.com/blue-cross-blue-shield-health-insurance-review

Average cost for a Family is 1,240 (see above) and there are 12 months in a year so 1249x12=$14,880

 

Employers eat the majority of Ins cost, "my cost" for single ins BC,BS is $230/mo my federal boss pays the rest.