Democratic health care divides Senate candidates

The leading Democrats who are fighting on the battlefield to overthrow the Senate want nothing to do with Medicare for all.

In states like Arizona, Iowa and North Carolina, challengers Mark Kelly, Theresa Greenfield and Cal Cunningham remain focused on the health message used by House Democrats in 2018: Expand Medicaid , protect Obamacare and suppress republican efforts. Jeanne Shaheen (DN.H.), Doug Jones (D-Ala.) And Gary Peters (D-Mich.) Are aligned in the same way and support the proposals as a public health insurance option but refuse to subscribe to a single national insurance. plan.

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This is a striking cleavage between Democrats who are developing plans for general elections in the major battlefield states and presidential candidates, such as Sense. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, facing a national Democratic primary. And uncomfortable general elections could happen if Warren or Sanders became the Democratic presidential candidate campaigning for Medicare for All, while the party's most likely Senate candidates were running on more subdued health care platforms.

Asked in an interview to find out if Medicare for All supporters could win his country, which is a crucial battleground, Peter Peters said they "should show and be able to explain exactly how it would help people here in Michigan.

"I think people want to be able to keep private insurance," he added, pointing out that he was in favor of a public option and legislation lowering the age required for Medicare.

Republican strategists are already working tirelessly to connect vulnerable Democratic holders with Medicare for all, whether they support the proposal or not. Activist groups fighting for single-payer health care say that this generalized policy will boost the Democratic base and that too cautious and calculating candidates will give voters no reason to run in 2020.

"These policies that sell as safe and progressive do not displace people," said Kelly Coogan-Gehr, deputy director of public and community advocacy at National Nurses United, the leading union fighting for Medicare for All. . "The base is not affected by security. We talk to hundreds of people every day and they are not moved by the expansion of the ACA or by a public option. They want something much more complete and they are ready to fight for it. "

Democrats must get at least three seats to win back the Senate in 2020. According to recent polls, the party has a huge advantage over the health care issue, but the general public remains wary of from Medicare for All. low.

Democratic strategists believe that it makes sense for presidential candidates to take on Medicare for All because they are largely in agreement about their ideals in health care and want show bold ideas to willing Democratic voters. But some fear that the risky promises for single-payer health care will be given priority over Trump's deeply unpopular record.

"This election is a referendum on the outgoing president," said Brad Woodhouse, an experienced Democrat consultant and executive director of the pro-Obamacare advocacy group, Protect Our Care. "This is a missed opportunity not to expose the consequences of a second Trump mandate for US health care: another repeal attempt, massive cuts in Medicare and Medicaid, constant efforts to downsize Medicaid and expel people from their blanket. This is at least as important as establishing your coverage plan. "

Woodhouse, a former spokesman for the Democratic Senate campaign committee, said Democrats should keep pace with Republicans' attempts to repeal Obamacare in 2017, as well as ongoing prosecution in federal court that could completely eliminate the law on affordable care tens of millions of people out of their insurance. The Trump Justice Department has supported the trial, which could be brought to the Supreme Court next year.

"[Sens.] Joni Ernst, Thom Tillis, Mitch McConnell and Cory Gardner – they have not faced voters since their attempt to repeal health care, "said Woodhouse. "And none of the most vulnerable Republicans vying for reelection has separated from the Texas lawsuit."

The trial has become a central element of Democratic Senate campaigns, with candidates also touting their own work to defend and develop Obamacare.

In Arizona, Democrats overturned a Senate seat last year mainly focusing on health care, hitting Republican Martha McSally for voting in the House to repeal Obamacare. McSally, who was appointed to the Senate and will report next year to a special election, faces Kelly, who made it clear in a recent interview with the Republic of Arizona that he was not supporting Medicare for All.

"I think it takes us in the wrong direction, in the opposite direction to where we have to go," said Kelly, pointing out those who would lose private insurance under the plan and stating that he preferred a public option. "This health insurance is not always perfect, but many of these people appreciate the plan that they have. I do not think we should take that away from them.

Other Democratic recruits hold similar positions. In Iowa, Greenfield, supported by DSCC, supports a public option and strengthens Obamacare, according to a campaign assistant. In North Carolina, after launching his campaign in June, Cunningham told local media that he was open to a public option, but that he did not approve of the elimination of private insurance. In Georgia, Teresa Tomlinson, the first Democrat in the race, supports a public option.

And in Colorado, which looks As the Democrats' best bid to overthrow a Senate seat in 2020, new Democratic leader John Hickenlooper has spent his brief presidential campaign skeptical of Medicare for All. Most other candidates also support some sort of public health care options. But Andrew Romanoff, the only leading candidate in the race that supports Medicare for All, told POLITICO that some Democrats "feared" because of Republican arguments against the single payer.

"It will only happen if we fight for it, and many Democrats go without a fight," Romanoff said.

In Texas, Democrats are divided in the same way. Former representative Chris Bell and activist Cristina Tzintzun Ramirez are supportive of Medicare for all. In a statement, Ramirez called the project a "benchmark to ensure that every American has comprehensive health care." But two others, Amanda Edwards and MJ Hegar, support a public option.

"I did not necessarily go for Medicare for all, not because we do not want coverage in principle, it certainly is," Edwards said in an interview after the launch. of his campaign in July. "I just think that there are different ways to try to reach the goals of broadening access to coverage and the option that people have expressed that they wanted. "

Although Shaheen co-sponsored an earlier version of Sanders' Bill, she did not adhere to the 2019 legislation and adopted a more moderate health care program to maintain and develop the current system.

"The best thing to do is to build on the Affordable Care Act and fix problems that do not work," said Shaheen. "I think this is the fastest way to expand coverage and reduce costs at the same time."

An internal survey conducted in July by strategists who advise the Democratic Senate's campaigns showed that the party retained an advantage among voters voting in health matters, particularly with regard to cost reduction and public option proposals.

Stewart Boss, a spokesman for the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee, said the Democrats were "focused on proposals that would expand coverage, improve access to health care and reduce costs," while Republican incumbents will be "held accountable for their harmful votes", thus repealing the government. Affordable Care Act.

Republicans have used the single payer principle as a wedge problem. The Republican National Committee of Senators paid billboards highlighting the issue on the battlefields of the Senate, and One Nation, a non-profit organization affiliated with the GOP leadership, aired television commercials attacking the Senate. policy.

"For Democrats, all roads lead to Medicare for all and the elimination of coverage by employers," said Jesse Hunt, NRSC spokesman. "Democratic Senators will not be able to escape the socialist agenda promised by the presidency of their party candidates, no matter how difficult they are trying to scramble their true purpose."

Advocacy groups opposed to Medicare for All agree that a candidate who pays an appointment and who pays for a single payer will put a lot of pressure on Senate candidates who present themselves in different states. – but they see this as an advantage rather than a handicap.

"You will see them forced to react to Medicare for All," says Coogan-Gehr. "People will stand on fire like never before."