Public Citizen, May 27, 2026
Our broken health care system continues to fail Americans at every turn.Ā Recent pollsĀ show that record levels of everyday Americans are dissatisfied with our broken health care system and that they are ready for Medicare for All. However, too many politicians and skeptical wonks are scrounging around for alternatives when what our system needs is Medicare for All. Stepping back from the fight for Medicare for All to push a lesser alternative threatens the progress weāve made toward a health care system that would finally put peopleās needs ahead of corporate profit.
Trump and his cronies in Congress are making our health care system worse every day and Americans are feeling the pinch. However, prospects for reform can be confusing with competing claims about which reforms would improve health care without increasing costs for working families or exploding the countryās already much too high health care spending.
The reality is that Medicare for All is the only solution that guarantees care for everyone in the U.S., brings down costs for working families, and generates savings for the country as whole. Lesser policies, including a public option or Medicare buy-in, are inferior to Medicare for All when it comes to policy, politics, and grassroots power.
- A Public Option or Medicare Buy-In Leaves Too Many Americans at the Whims of Greedy Insurers and Millions Would Remain Uninsured
- Insurers Would Take Advantage of Any Public Option or Medicare Buy-In, Just Like They Do With Medicare Advantage
- A Public Option Would Keep Healthcare Spending Rising at Unsustainable Levels
- There is No Grassroots Movement for a Public Option, Whereas the Movement for Medicare for All Grows Daily
- Other Reforms Could Take Us Closer to Medicare for All
- Medicare for All Must Remain the North Star for Health Reform
full factsheet: https://citizen.org…
