Thread by @dcpetterson

I keep hearing Bernie Cultists (or trolls pretending to be) wanting to use Medicare for All as a litmus test. I tell them I'm for universal healthcare coverage, not M4A. Medicare is a bad, bad model to follow.

Let's clear up some misconceptions about Medicare.

1/14

First, Medicare isn't free. You pay into Medicare all your working life as part of the FICA taxes on your paycheck. M4A would have to substantially increase that tax. The increase would likely be less than your current medical insurance premium, but do be aware of the cost.

2/14

Once you hit age 65, you become eligible for Medicare. Under certain conditions (example: renal failure), you can buy into Medicare before that, with a monthly premium of about $450.00.

Let's look at the cost of Medicare for a 65-year-old.

3/14

Medicare is divided into four Parts: A, B, C, and D. Each has a cost.

Part A has no monthly premium. It covers 80% of hospital bills, also long-term care and a few other things. You pay the other 20% out of your pocket. There is also $1300 annual deductible.
It's not free.

4/14

Part B covers most other common medical costs--mental heath, outpatient, medical tests, doctor bills--but not drugs or vision or dental. Again, there are deductibles. There is also a monthly premium, about $130.

It's not free either.

5/14

Part C is private "medigap" coverage offered by PRIVATE INSURANCE COMPANIES. It pays the 20% that Parts A and B don't cover and can include dental, vision and drugs. You pay big monthly premiums for this, up to $500/month, plus deductibles and co-pays.

It's FAR from free.

6/14

Part D specifically deigned to cover prescription drugs. Heavily subsidized by federal taxes. It's also PRIVATE INSURANCE. It can cover everything Part C covers, and is usually cheaper than a Part C plan. You pay premiums, deductibles, and co-pays.

Not. At. All. Free.

7/14

Note that if you get a Part C "medigap" plan, or a Part D (aka "Medicare Advantage") plan, you still have to ALSO pay the Part B premium of about $130/month.

Medicare is not universal, free, or single-payer. It's a combination of public and private insurance.

8/14

What most of the Talibern means by "M4A" is NOT Medicare.

What they mean is a "universal single-payer plan, paid for 100% out of tax revenue, with no deductibles, premiums, or co-pays"--which is NOT "Medicare for All", and has not been proposed by any US politician, ever.

9/14

Let me be clear. I would support a "universal single-payer plan, paid for 100% out of tax revenue, with no deductibles, premiums, or co-pays"--but that's not M4A, it's not Bernie's plan, and it's not on anybody's table., and it WOULD NOT BE PASSED by the House or Senate.

10/14

Because I would support that unicorns-with-rainbows plan does NOT mean I used it as a litmus test. I'm in favor of ANYTHING that moves us toward a system of universal coverage, and the more public involvement the better.

11/14

I'm a progressive. I believe in progress.

Demanding all-or-nothing is the surest way to get nothing.

The Affordable Care Act is damn good, gave more than 20 million people medical care who never had it before, and have all the rest of us BETTER care than we ever had.

12/14

Medical costs keep going up, but the ACA slowed the rate of increase, and did so while extending the life of Medicare by more than a decade.

Taliberners who insist we vote out anyone who doesn't support unicorns and rainbows don't have a clue about the topic.

13/14

And all that is quite apart from the pressing issue of getting Nazis out of our government, and ridding ourselves of a POTUS who is enslaved to America's greatest enemy.

Anyone who uses M4A to argue against any Democrat is not only stupid, but is working for Putin.

14/14