68% of American Public Supports Single Payer Healthcare Reform

Our grassroots organizing campaign to get an economic impact study to pass HB 1660, a Single Payer, guaranteed healthcare program for all Pennsylvanians, also called “Family and Business Healthcare Security Act” has reached higher ground as three separate events converge that bode extremely well for the eventual passage of the bill.

Here is a summery of these three events:

1) Independence Blue Cross of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh based Highmark Blue Shield were poised to merge and take over health insurance coverage here in Pennsylvania.

Sun Gazzette

Pennacchio's citizens advocacy group is backing legislation known as the Family and Business Health Security Act that calls for elimination of insurance premiums, co-pays and deductibles.

The plan would be funded through a 10-percent business payroll "health and wellness tax" and a 3-percent personal income tax.

Those fees, he said, would go into the Pennsylvania Health Trust and be used exclusively for health care delivery, including just 5 percent for administrative costs.

The plan also calls for eliminating waste and inefficiency in health care and promoting education.

Rallying for a single-payer plan

Pennacchio: Everyone, everyone to a person said we could never get state Senator Don White, who is the gatekeeper for health care in the state senate to give us a hearing. Don White is giving us a hearing before Banking and Insurance in the fall.

A spokesman for the Indiana County Republican says proponents and critics will be invited to debate the single-payer idea. But he says the senator is not convinced that a single-payer plan is a workable solution to expand healthcare access in Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania Is Ground Zero for Passage of Single Payer

I just got off the phone with Chuck Pennacchio, who is our tireless facilitator here in Pennsylvania to spearhead the passage of Single Payer legislation. Perhaps we will be the first State in the Union to pass Single Payer, otherwise known as HB 1660/SB 300.

Several questions were raised during the course of our call.

1. Why is Washington not the right venue for Single Payer Passage?

Let's talk about a fall back position. Let's say the climate in the US will not support an all-at-once single payer system. OK. What would work?

Chuck Pennacchio argues for a state by state approach. If we can pass single payer systems in a few states, people will see its superiority. It seems that is how it was adopted in Canada, first Saskatchewan passed a single payer, then the Saskatchewan Premiere (or whatever they are called, I'm just an amateur blogger) got elected PM of Canada and passed a national system. So a states first approach does make sense.

There is single payer legislation pending in California, Ohio, and other states. We just need it to pass in one state for it's virtues to be obvious.

Report from the Progressive Democrats of America Convention