While “Medicare for all”has been frequently referenced by politicians and in recent news reports, the average American has little idea what the phrase actually means and how it would take shape as a policy, according to news reports.
A September 6, 2019 ProPublica article explored the murky definition of Medicare for all and discussed how different politicians have embraced different components of the concept, such as having a single-payer system and/or abolishing private insurance.
“When you say Medicare-for-all, there are eight different flavors” that are each dependent on each presidential candidate’s platform, said John McDonough, professor of the practice of public health at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. “It’s an advertising slogan; it’s not a scientific concept.”
McDonough was also quoted in a September 11, 2019 Boston Globe article on the topic. “Chances are there is no way this could pass through the United States Senate,” he said.
Read the ProPublica article: Medicare-for-All Is Not Medicare, and Not Really for All. So What Does It Actually Mean?
Read the Boston Globe article: What exactly is Medicare for All? It depends whom you ask