The Ithaca Local of Democratic Socialists of America today called for the defeat of the health care “reform” bill that is emerging from the Senate. 

The bill reportedly contains no public option (immediate or triggered), no Medicare buy-in for those under age 65, no competition for for-profit plans, no meaningful cost containment and no prohibition against insurance companies colluding on premiums and terms of coverage. 

“This is not a reform bill in any sense of the word,” said Marty Luster, Chair of the Ithaca local. “This is a piece of legislation written by and for the insurance industry. It mandates individuals to purchase health insurance from for-profit corporations which retain as much as 40% of premiums paid for administration (including obscene executive salaries), marketing and profit.* We will be better off if the bill fails and we have the opportunity to start over with a real reform plan,” he said.

“Medicare has 3% administrative costs and nothing goes to profits, so Medicare for all would have been the fiscally responsible way to go,” Theresa Alt, Secretary of Ithaca DSA, said. “The Democratic majority really missed the boat when they gave up in advance on Medicare for all and instead pushed the ‘public option’, a compromise from the start. Since then they have compromised again and again until now there is hardly any reform left in the bill,” she added.

The Democratic Socialists of America is the nation’s largest socialist organization. It supports a single payer (Medicare for All) health care plan, although it has urged, at a minimum, that any plan adopted by Congress contain a robust public option.

*Report by Families USA