Description
Book SynopsisLargely privately funded with relatively little public regulation, the United States healthcare system is both expensive and inefficient, providing poor care to large parts of the population.
For decades, Americans have wrestled with how to fix their broken healthcare system. In this razor-sharp contribution to the healthcare debate, leading economist and former adviser to Bernie Sanders Gerald Friedman recommends that we build on what works: a Medicare system that already efficiently provides healthcare for millions of Americans. Rejecting the discredited idea that healthcare should be treated like any other commodity, Friedman shows that healthcare is distinctive and can be best provided only through universal program of social insurance. Deftly exposing the absurdities of the opponents of reform, Friedman shows in detail how the solution to our health care crisis is staring us in the face: enroll everyone in Medicare to improve the health of all Americans.
This bold and brilliantly argued book is essential reading for anyone who wants to see Congress and the White House act to provide America with a 21st century healthcare system.
Trade Review“As we enter a new era in the fight for universal healthcare in America, Professor Friedman’s book distills the failures of our current system – and the complexities of what should replace it – into a compelling and easy-to-understand explainer for anyone looking to understand Medicare for All. This is a must-read for anyone who wants to go beyond the headlines to get a nuanced account of the politics and policy behind Medicare for All.”
Jim McGovern, Congressman for the 2nd District of Massachusetts
"We need a clear, concise analysis of universal Medicare in all its forms that cuts through the complexities, and that is what Professor Friedman has given us. As he shows, sixty-five million of us already enjoy its benefits in the U.S., an eloquent demonstration of its superiority in cost and efficiency to the private competition.”
Michael Dukakis, Former Governor of Massachusetts and Democratic Party Presidential Nominee 1988
“Professor Friedman is one of the leading thinkers in the country on the economics that underpin universal healthcare coverage. His visionary work in The Case for Medicare for All is just what our country needs right now. The inequities in our current healthcare system are glaring and inexcusable, and I’m grateful to have Professor Friedman’s important and timely research in order to better understand how Massachusetts can transition from our current health care system to a single payer system.”
Joanne M. Comerford, Massachussetts State Senator and former Campaign Director at MoveOn
“Economics Professor Gerald Friedman has devoted his career to defending Medicare for All. In this convincing book, he explains his reasoning and why America would be transformed for the better.”
Walter Tsou, University of Pennsylvania
Table of ContentsFigures and Tables
Acknowledgements
Preface: We Need Better
Introduction: The Failure of Free Market Healthcare
Chapter One: Why Markets Cannot Work in Healthcare
Chapter Two: Can We Afford Medicare for All?
Chapter Three: From Here to There is Politics
Chapter Four: Universal Healthcare is Better Economics
Because it Acknowledges Human Rights
Notes
