If the catastrophic implications of the coronavirus aren't the best possible argument for a Medicare for All single payer system, I don’t know what is.
Connor Turque Opinion contributor
There’s no way around it, Bernie Sanders is losing. A path to the Democratic presidential nomination still exists, but it's a Hail Mary. He lost in 2016, too, but it was one of the most successful losses in electoral history. What were once considered radical, career jeopardizing stances on issues like single payer health care, a $15 minimum wage and free college became the standard by which a large chunk of the Democratic electorate measures a candidate. He changed the trajectory of the Democratic Party.
Now, nominee or not, he could do it again. As we face down the COVID-19 pandemic, Bernie has an unexpected chance, and an obligation. A chance to change the conversation once again, and an obligation to push Joe Biden as far to the left on health care as he can. He has substantial leverage to do so.
Center for Disease Control officials have said they are not billing for the cost of COVID-19 testing, but that doesn’t mean it’s free, or even affordable. As a lot of us are about to find out, depending on your insurance (or lack thereof) you can expect to get a bill in the mail for a COVID-19 test, in some cases for more than $3,000. The test itself might be free, but the tangential costs related to being treated in a hospital are inescapable, and can be exorbitant. Nearly 28 million Americans have been left uninsured by Obamacare. Exactly how proactive do you think they are going to be about getting tested?
That thing that Bernie has been yelling about for years? This is that.
COVID-19 best case for single payer
If you haven’t recently tuned in to CNN or MSNBC (the networks that have spent the better part of the year deriding Sanders, with mostly aesthetic complaints, the common refrain being that he “shouts too much”), their commentators are beginning to sound a lot like Bernie surrogates.
We as a nation are going to get to watch, in real time, as institutions of power in America assess the value of human life against financial losses. This isn’t a new or notable occurrence. But the song that’s been playing quietly for years is currently being blared over a loudspeaker for everyone to hear. If the catastrophic implications of the coronavirus aren't the best possible argument for a single payer system, I don’t know what is.
In a recent interview with MSNBC's Lawrence O'Donnell, Democratic frontrunner Joe Biden suggested he might veto a Medicare for All bill if one were to land on his desk. However unlikely that scenario, the disconnect it highlights between Biden and a large chunk of the electorate is shocking, and would hurt him in November. He may not end up needing the youth vote Bernie has a near-monopoly on to secure the nomination, but he is going to need it if he wants to beat Donald Trump. That means making some concessions, and showing a willingness to make some enemies in the private sector.
Case for Bernie:Moderate Democrats have a duty to consider Sanders. He has a clear path to beating Trump.
There’s a reason major health care stocks surged by double-digits after Biden’s Super Tuesday victories. If the former vice president wins the nomination, and is serious about beating Trump, he'd be wise to embrace single payer. In all 20 primary contests to date with an exit or entrance poll, most Democrats — in some states as many as two-thirds or more — said they favor "a government plan for all instead of private insurance."
Biden needs to show me something
I myself am undecided about whether I’ll vote for Joe if he’s the nominee. There’s a lot of election left and I don’t need to decide today. But Biden needs to show me something. Like tens of thousands of other people, I’ve given everything I’ve got to fight for Bernie over the past months. The thought of settling for someone who appears to share very few common goals with me is a painful one. It’s also a familiar one. It cannot be overstated how little most young voters like me care about “restoring some dignity of the office.”
Warren's choice:She has the chance to unite the left by endorsing Sanders. She should take it.
Bernie Sanders is the first politician in my lifetime whom I’ve heard speak about compassion in convincing, dead-serious terms. That kind of unqualified compassion at the foundation of the movement is why, even after Bernie’s crushing defeat in Michigan, campaign volunteers stuck around in the following days to organize mutual aid with local groups to help those affected by COVID-19 shutdowns.
This is a bitter, sobering moment for Berners. If I’m going to be asked once again to vote for a candidate who has spent his career compromising, I’m going to need to see him compromise for me.
Connor Turque was a volunteer for Sen. Bernie Sanders' 2020 presidential campaign in Iowa, Nevada and Michigan. Follow him on Twitter: @turkowits
There’s no way around it, Bernie Sanders is losing. A path to the Democratic presidential nomination still exists, but it's a Hail Mary. He lost in 2016, too, but it was one of the most successful losses in electoral history. What were once considered radical, career jeopardizing stances on issues like single payer health care, a $15 minimum wage and free college became the standard by which a large chunk of the Democratic electorate measures a candidate. He changed the trajectory of the Democratic Party.
Now, nominee or not, he could do it again. As we face down the COVID-19 pandemic, Bernie has an unexpected chance, and an obligation. A chance to change the conversation once again, and an obligation to push Joe Biden as far to the left on health care as he can. He has substantial leverage to do so.
Center for Disease Control officials have said they are not billing for the cost of COVID-19 testing, but that doesn’t mean it’s free, or even affordable. As a lot of us are about to find out, depending on your insurance (or lack thereof) you can expect to get a bill in the mail for a COVID-19 test, in some cases for more than $3,000. The test itself might be free, but the tangential costs related to being treated in a hospital are inescapable, and can be exorbitant. Nearly 28 million Americans have been left uninsured by Obamacare. Exactly how proactive do you think they are going to be about getting tested?
That thing that Bernie has been yelling about for years? This is that.
COVID-19 best case for single payer
If you haven’t recently tuned in to CNN or MSNBC (the networks that have spent the better part of the year deriding Sanders, with mostly aesthetic complaints, the common refrain being that he “shouts too much”), their commentators are beginning to sound a lot like Bernie surrogates.
We as a nation are going to get to watch, in real time, as institutions of power in America assess the value of human life against financial losses. This isn’t a new or notable occurrence. But the song that’s been playing quietly for years is currently being blared over a loudspeaker for everyone to hear. If the catastrophic implications of the coronavirus aren't the best possible argument for a single payer system, I don’t know what is.
In a recent interview with MSNBC's Lawrence O'Donnell, Democratic frontrunner Joe Biden suggested he might veto a Medicare for All bill if one were to land on his desk. However unlikely that scenario, the disconnect it highlights between Biden and a large chunk of the electorate is shocking, and would hurt him in November. He may not end up needing the youth vote Bernie has a near-monopoly on to secure the nomination, but he is going to need it if he wants to beat Donald Trump. That means making some concessions, and showing a willingness to make some enemies in the private sector.
Case for Bernie:Moderate Democrats have a duty to consider Sanders. He has a clear path to beating Trump.
There’s a reason major health care stocks surged by double-digits after Biden’s Super Tuesday victories. If the former vice president wins the nomination, and is serious about beating Trump, he'd be wise to embrace single payer. In all 20 primary contests to date with an exit or entrance poll, most Democrats — in some states as many as two-thirds or more — said they favor "a government plan for all instead of private insurance."
Biden needs to show me something
I myself am undecided about whether I’ll vote for Joe if he’s the nominee. There’s a lot of election left and I don’t need to decide today. But Biden needs to show me something. Like tens of thousands of other people, I’ve given everything I’ve got to fight for Bernie over the past months. The thought of settling for someone who appears to share very few common goals with me is a painful one. It’s also a familiar one. It cannot be overstated how little most young voters like me care about “restoring some dignity of the office.”
Warren's choice:She has the chance to unite the left by endorsing Sanders. She should take it.
Bernie Sanders is the first politician in my lifetime whom I’ve heard speak about compassion in convincing, dead-serious terms. That kind of unqualified compassion at the foundation of the movement is why, even after Bernie’s crushing defeat in Michigan, campaign volunteers stuck around in the following days to organize mutual aid with local groups to help those affected by COVID-19 shutdowns.
This is a bitter, sobering moment for Berners. If I’m going to be asked once again to vote for a candidate who has spent his career compromising, I’m going to need to see him compromise for me.
Connor Turque was a volunteer for Sen. Bernie Sanders' 2020 presidential campaign in Iowa, Nevada and Michigan. Follow him on Twitter: @turkowits
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