There is really only one problem in the Democratic primary



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The disagreements among the candidates were largely focused on the three main debates on how to give each American health insurance and how to pay for it.

On other issues, there are differences on the board and some have larger and larger plans than others. But they are all largely in agreement that something radical and immediate must be done to fight climate change. They all want to attack the National Rifle Association. They all want, very very strong, to overthrow President Donald Trump.

But they are completely divided on what to do when it comes to health insurance. And this happens to be one of the main problems for voters in general, and more specifically for Democratic voters.

In a CNN poll conducted by SSRS in September, 89 percent of Democratic and Democratic voters said health care was extremely or very important. Smaller, though still important, percentages say the same thing about climate change, gun policy and the economy.

For Republicans and Republican-registered voters, health care was only the fourth most cited problem – 73% of them said that health care was extremely or very important to their health care. vote in the chair. Fewer Republicans cited health care as the economy, immigration and gun policy.

But while Democrats – candidates and voters – almost universally agree that health care is an important issue, they seem desperately divided over what needs to be done.

In a Pew survey conducted in July, 53 percent of Americans said the government had a responsibility to ensure that Americans receive health care coverage, compared with 44 percent who say the government does not have health care coverage. would not have one.

But there is a massive partisan division. According to the survey, only 19 percent of Republicans and Republican-backed adults said the government had a responsibility, compared to 81 percent of Democrats and adults with a democratic tendency.

And it's just where the disagreements begin.

While most Republicans do not want the government to be involved in health insurance, 64% of them say that Medicare should be maintained.

The largest group of Democrats and Democrats, 44%, believe that there should be only one government health insurance program (such as Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren and "Medicare for All"). But 34% of Democrats say there should be a mix of government and private programs (like Joe Biden, Amy Klobuchar, Pete Buttigieg and Beto O. Rourke).

Add to all this the history of the party with the question.

When President Barack Obama took office in 2009 with a Senate majority at the bumper test and after spending quite a bit of political capital to help an economy plagued by the Great Recession, he and the Democrats all spent for the Affordable Care Act.

Without any help from Republicans, they concocted votes among Democrats for what became known as Obamacare. Despite unremitting efforts, they were unable to add a public health insurance option for people not eligible for Medicare. They had to comply with the rules of the Senate to pass the thing. And then, they lost the House of Representatives and have spent every year since then trying to protect the law from Republican assaults. This means that what they adopted in 2010, although defective, has been frozen in time.

Sanders, by the way, was one of the 2010 Liberals who supported the Affordable Care Act reluctantly for something to be done at the time.

This has led to a first phase in 2020 in which each candidate wants more government involvement in the health insurance market, but there are increasingly fierce disagreements about how to proceed.

The candidates are all respectful of Obama's legacy, while asserting that his achievements are either totally flawed or wholly inadequate, and must be replaced as soon as possible by a government plan for all – or any at least, requiring a major overhaul. .

Here, in four excerpts from a transcript of Thursday's Democratic presidential debate, is the difference between the party, which half wants to start again with Medicare for All and the other to improve the Affordable Care Act.

Former Vice President Joe Biden, who wants to make private insurance more affordable

I know that Senator (Warren) says that she is for Bernie. Well, I'm for Barack. I think that Obamacare worked. I think the way we add, replace everything that was cut, add a public option, guarantee everyone affordable insurance, number one.

Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, who wants to get rid of private insurance

In fact, I have never met anyone who loves their health insurance company. I have met people who love their doctors. I have met people who love their nurses. I have met people who love their pharmacists. I have met people who love their physiotherapists. What they want is access to health care. And we just need to clarify what health insurance is for everyone. Instead of paying premiums to insurance companies and then having the insurance companies accumulate their profits by refusing to be covered, we will do this by saying that everyone is covered by Medicare for All, all health care providers are covered.

Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who wants to align the United States with other countries

Americans do not want to pay twice as much as other countries. And they guarantee health care to everyone. In my Medicare for All proposal, when you do not pay out of pocket and you do not pay premiums, you may meet people who like their premiums, not me.

South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who does not want to force Americans to adopt a particular health plan

Senator Sanders, with this damn bill that you have written, and which Senator Warren supports, it is that he does not trust the American people. I trust you to choose what makes the most sense to you. Not my way or the highway.

And this does not even lead to the question of how to pay for these plans, which is another essential difference. Biden and others say taxes will increase. Sanders and Warren argue that the premiums will go down, canceling that. The calculation becomes very vague.

But, and this may be more of a discussion of the general election, but neither a public option nor health insurance for all seem very likely to go through a Republican-controlled Senate. It will not even be a discussion if Trump is re-elected. There is therefore a good chance that the total disagreement between the Democrats in health care will become academic.

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