This is a blog to discuss the views of the now 12 contenders to fill Nikki Tsongas’ seat representing the Massachusetts 3rd District. We have already discussed education policy and minimum wage. This week we will be discussing healthcare. As stated previously, any candidate who does not have a website will not be discussed further in this blog, because I simply don’t have time for someone who isn’t serious when there are 11 other serious candidates.
Here is a table showing each candidate’s views on the most broken parts of our healthcare system. Again, I will color-code answers in terms of more liberal being bluer, more moderate being redder, and more confused being grayer. Because I am analyzing the Democratic candidates, I will be putting the more liberal candidates on each issue at the top, and the more conservative candidates at the bottom.
Lori Trahan’s entry in the table is bolded because you should read her views straight from her website. She appears to have a solid understanding of healthcare policy, but the format of this blog is ineffective at covering such detail.
| Name | Single Payer | The VA | ObamaCare | Transparency |
| L’Italien | Yes | Not mentioned | Worked on the Massachusetts one which it was based on. | Health insurers need to provide better information |
| St. John | Yes, slowly | Improve access and wait times | Not far enough, fix it | Lack causes inflation |
| Trahan | Not Mentioned | Not mentioned | Strengthen and defend | Improve (very detailed) |
| Chandler | Yes | Not Mentioned. | Public Option until Single Payer | Supports creation of a universal medical records system |
| Gifford | Yes, but Massachusetts needs to do it first. | Not mentioned | Helped pass it | Increase Accountability |
| Malone | Not mentioned | Not mentioned | Protect, fix, and strengthen | Not mentioned |
| Matias | Yes | Not mentioned | Not mentioned | Not mentioned |
| Koh | Sure | Fix | Strengthen and add public option | Not mentioned |
| Littlefield | Yes | Not mentioned | Not mentioned | Not mentioned |
| Das | Yes | Fold into the new single-payer | Good first step, too expensive for employers | Not Mentioned |
Barbara L’Italien has fought hard on this issue in the Massachusetts legislature, earning her the Mass-Care advocacy group endorsement. She believes strongly that people with pre-existing conditions need to be protected, that CHIP needs to be fully funded, and that patients should be allowed to try to treatment which has the highest likelihood of success before needing to try less expensive treatments.
Keith St. John spoke to me after the rally on Monday, and impressed me with his desire to fix the healthcare system. He wants us to move in the direction of single payer, but thinks that we need to do so slowly and carefully. He pointed out that ObamaCare needs to be fixed in order to work as it was intended.
Lori Trahan has the most specific and detailed information on bringing down healthcare costs of any candidate. She talks about specific changes which can be made to laws regarding medical costs, record-keeping, and informed consent.
Alexandra Chandler says that she would vote for the Sanders-Conyers healthcare bill in Congress, with an amendment to make it phase in over time. This bill allows Medicare to cover any resident of the United States, and the bill’s language claims that this can be paid for by current federal healthcare spending. Chandler also says that the bill must be amended to include some protections currently included in Medicaid, but not in Medicare.
I spoke with Rufus Gifford at the rally on Monday, and he pointed out that he had been a part of the team who helped President Obama pass ObamaCare. He has seen how effective single payer is in other countries, including during his time as the US ambassador to Denmark, but he recognizes that it will be hard to get single-payer passed federally before a few states show that it can be done well.
Bopha Malone says that we should "protect, fix, and strengthen" ObamaCare.
Juana Matias supports single-payer healthcare.
Dan Koh believes in the Affordable care act, and wants to strengthen, defend, and expand it. He believes that it should include a public option, where Americans could buy into something like Medicare.
Patrick Littlefield only mentioned making higher ed more affordable on his website.
Abhijit "Beej" Das wants a system similar to what you would find in England, where you get basic health insurance just by being an American, but if you want coverage for more than that, you need to pay for private insurance as well.
Next week, the topic will be Mental Health, including drug policy.
- The following candidates do not talk about specific education policies on their websites.
- Jeff Ballinger
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