Marking an important milestone, last week the House of Representatives held its first ever hearing dedicated to discussing Medicare for All policy.  While the idea of Medicare for All and other single-payer options have been discussed in Washington, D.C. for decades, and Senator Ted Kennedy held a series of field hearings across the U.S. on a single-payer plan, last week was the first official Medicare for All hearing convened by Congress.

The hearing was convened by House Rules Committee Chair Jim McGovern.  From the Democratic side, most of the discussion focused on health care as a human right, while Republican input mostly focused on likely tax burden, total cost and the adverse impact a single-payer system would have on the quality of health care.   Additional hearings on Medicare for All legislation are expected to be held in the House Ways and Means Committee in the near future.