Last week, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) announced his intention to chair the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee in the next Congress. He’s promised to “focus on universal healthcare.”
In other words, the senator’s long-standing quest for “Medicare for All” has new life. We can expect hearings featuring an array of cheerleaders for a government takeover of the nation’s healthcare system. It’s a safe bet that market-oriented thinkers won’t be welcome at those hearings. But ignoring our critique won’t change the reality of government-run healthcare: long waits, poor-quality care, and high costs.
Canadians wait a median of 25.6 weeks to see a specialist after referral from a general practitioner, according to the Fraser Institute, a Vancouver-based think tank. These waits often lead to poorer health outcomes, as treatable ailments deteriorate into chronic or irreversible conditions.
Making healthcare “free” at the point of service creates more demand for treatment. With a limited supply of doctors, long waits are the inevitable result. And “free” is, at best, misleading. Canadians pay for their care not just through waits but through high taxes. Although less than U.S. healthcare costs, the average household with two parents and two children paid nearly $16,000 in taxes for public healthcare last year.
Single-payer would be no less expensive here. A George Mason University study estimates that the proposal Sen. Sanders flogged when running for president would cost taxpayers $32.6 trillion over 10 years. Medicare for All’s future will be dim in a divided Congress with a Democratic president. But the idea will surely get a lot of airtime with Sanders at the helm of the HELP Committee.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM RESTORING AMERICA
Sally C. Pipes is president, CEO, and Thomas W. Smith fellow in Health Care Policy at the Pacific Research Institute. Her latest book is False Premise, False Promise: The Disastrous Reality of Medicare for All (Encounter 2020). Follow her on Twitter @sallypipes.
