On Capitol Hill, Vermont independent Senator Bernie Sanders is set to introduce a universal healthcare bill today that would expand Medicare coverage to include every American. Under emerging details of the plan, everyone 55 and older—and children under 18—would qualify for Medicare during the program’s first year, while the remainder of adults would be phased in over four years. The program would pay for doctors’ visits, hospital stays, preventative and mental healthcare, and prescription drugs—while expanding Medicare to include vision, hearing and dental care. To pay for the expansion, the bill would levy a new 2.2 percent income tax on all Americans and a 6.2 percent tax on employers—who would no longer be required to provide health insurance to workers. The measure would also raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans. Ahead of today’s rollout of the bill, 15 senators—comprising a third of the Democratic caucus—signed on as co-sponsors. They include New Jersey Senator Cory Booker, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren and California Senator Kamala Harris. In the House, Democratic Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said she would not support “Medicare for All” and would instead focus on defending against Republican efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act. We’ll have more on Sen. Bernie Sanders’s Medicare-for-all plan after headlines.
