Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) urged Democrats to pursue universal health care, arguing that reversing Republican-backed cuts and restoring existing protections would not be enough to address America’s health care challenges.
Murray Calls For Sweeping Health Care Reforms
On Saturday, in a post on X, Murray described Republicans’ health care strategy as “death by a thousand cuts” and said Democrats must be more ambitious than offering temporary solutions.
“We have got to reverse the Medicaid cuts that are shutting down our hospitals,” Murray said in a video accompanying the post.
She also called for restoring Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits that help families afford health insurance.
Murray further criticized what she described as President Donald Trump’s plan to use artificial intelligence to cut seniors off from their Medicare benefits.
“But we can’t stop there because if Republicans’ health care strategy is death by a thousand cuts, Democrats have to be more than the party of a thousand band-aids,” she said.
She called for a “robust public option and universal coverage,” arguing that Democrats should pursue broader structural changes rather than rely solely on reversing Republican policies.
Growing Calls For Universal Health Care
Last week, billionaire investor Mark Cuban voiced support for universal health care, proposing a bipartisan commission involving patients, hospitals and pharmaceutical companies to explore ways to reduce costs and expand access.
In August, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) renewed his call for Medicare for All, describing health care as a basic human right and urging lawmakers to pursue universal coverage through a single-payer system.
In July, Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) criticized Republicans’ health care proposals, accusing them of “gutting health care programs to give handouts to billionaires” and calling for lower costs and expanded coverage.
US Health Care Costs Surge
Earlier this month, the Kobeissi Letter said U.S. health care costs had risen at an “alarming rate,” with medical care prices climbing 132% since 2000, outpacing shelter costs (127%), food prices (112%) and overall CPI (99%).
Citing a KFF survey, the market commentator added that approximately 30% of insured U.S. adults had skipped or delayed needed medical care because of costs in the previous 12 months, warning that “Healthcare costs have never been higher.”
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
Photo courtesy: Joshua Sukoff / Shutterstock.com
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