Bernie Sanders Attacks Joe Biden’s Healthcare Proposal: ‘Times Change, And We Have Got To Go Further’
Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders used his interview with The Washington Post on Tuesday to attack fellow candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden for his criticism of Sanders’ health care plan and his plan to expand the Affordable Care Act (ACA) with an optional public insurance program.
Sanders suggests Biden’s criticisms of his Medicare-for-all proposal are “absurd,” and also claims that Biden’s plan isn’t enough of a step forward.
“Times change, and we have got to go further,” Sanders said.
Biden’s plan would reportedly cost $750 billion over 10 years, while Sanders’ would cost between $30 trillion and $40 trillion over the same period of time. But Sanders stressed that his plan would result in a dramatic cost savings in health care, and claims that Biden’s plan would not ensure that all Americans get the coverage they need.
Per The Inquisitr, Biden recently accused Sanders of planning to raise taxes on the middle class to pay for his health care plan, and The Hill reports the Democratic frontrunner said there is “no time” to implement Sanders’ plan. But many were quick to point out the inaccuracy of Biden’s claims.
“Biden keeps casually lying about a mystery wait period between ACA and Medicare for All where people are dying off without insurance for months,” journalist Adam H. Johnson wrote on Twitter.
Sanders also hit back at Biden’s counter-factual statement.
“At a time when Donald Trump and the health insurance industry are lying every day about Medicare for All, I would hope that my fellow Democrats would not resort to misinformation about my legislation.”
Who told these lies about Medicare for All?
?? Joe Biden
?? Donald Trump
?? Mitch McConnell
?? The CEO of UnitedHealthcareTake the quiz –> https://t.co/tNrS8SPmHO
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) July 16, 2019
Common Dreams reports that Sanders compared Biden’s approach the healthcare with Republicans, insurances companies, and the pharmaceutical industries, suggesting they all ignore that “people will save money on their healthcare because they will no longer have to pay premiums or out-of-pocket expenses.”
According to The Washington Post, two-thirds of Democratic voters are in favor of moving to a single-payer healthcare system without the option of private insurance. Regardless, Biden appears to be dead-set on sticking with the ACA, which isn’t surprising given that The Intercept reports Biden’s campaign was launched alongside lobbyists such as Daniel Hilferty. Hilferty is on the board of America’s Health Insurance Plans — a political advocacy and trade association that regularly donates to Republicans and works to defeat the push for socialized healthcare.
Sanders also used his Washington Post interview to suggest that Biden’s support for the Iraq War and opposition to far-reaching trade deals won’t go over well with Midwest voters.
