The first test for "Medicare for All" in California, the type of universal health care enjoyed by every other nation of similar economic means in the world, takes place Wednesday in the California Senate Health Committee.
SB 562, authored by Senator Ricardo Lara, will be heard in a traditional stronghold of the health insurance industry. Health insurance companies, including Kaiser Permanente, have weighed in against the measure, which would create new health care efficiencies through state bulk purchasing of medical services and spread the savings around by guaranteeing coverage to all.
There's a lot of details to be worked out and it's a complicated dance with federal funding, but the legislation has the potential to turn California into a true Golden State example for the rest of the nation if it progresses and is refined. New national polling finds 60% of Americans now want "Medicare For All."
Senate Appropriations Chair Ricardo Lara seems determined to make that happen, but he faces a less than friendly crowd in the Senate Health Committee, which in recent years has failed to move legisaltion regulating health insurance company rates.
Activists from across California, led by the mighty California Nurses Association, will rally in Sacramento to make their case. This could be the first step to a much better health care future. Democrats in Sacramento have been talking the talk lately about trumping Trump by building a truly progressive state. Wednesday they will have their chance to walk the walk.
