Congresswoman Jaime Herrera Beutler was one of the few Republicans to vote against the American Health Care Act, the Republican repeal-and-replace health care bill. The reason she gave was that it doesn’t do enough to “make health care affordable and accessible for all” is to be commended, but the alternatives she recommends — Health Savings Accounts, high-risk pools, and buying insurance across state lines — are totally inadequate to accomplish that goal.
In a telephone “town hall” recently, she seemed exasperated by what she called “far-left activists” calling for single-payer health care as the solution. It’s not just far-left activists that like single-payer. In an Economist/YouGov poll in April, 60 percent of all respondents like the idea, including 46 percent of Republicans.
If Herrera Beutler really wanted “healthcare affordable and accessible for all” she should sign onto H.R. 676 — Expanded & Improved Medicare For All Act. It’s a sensible solution that already has popular support.
