AMERICA'S HEALTH CARE SYSTEM IS IN CRISIS. Health care costs are rising faster than families can afford. Today, one-in-three Americans with health insurance say they struggle to afford their health insurance as health care costs soar.¹ Insurance premiums have risen 20% in the last 5 years alone with the average premium now $18,142/year for a family of 3 and $6,435/year for individuals.² Deductibles have risen even faster. The average deductible for the cheapest health plan on the ACA exchange is $12,393 for a family of 3 and $6,092 for individuals.⁴ Health care-related bankruptcies continue to rise. 

While healthcare costs would be even higher without ObamaCare, the status quo is hardly sustainable. Americans need relief now. As Republicans devise their own solution, two California Democrats, Ricardo Lara and Toni Atkins, have proposed their own: SB-562 - The Healthy Califronia Act.

SB-562l would introduce a single-payer healthcare system to the state. Premiums, copays, and deductibles would be replaced with a single tax like that for Medicare. Networks would no longer exist and Californians could see any doctor at any hospital by simply showing a valid California ID.⁵ All forms of medical care would be covered including:⁵

Republicans and moderate Democrats warn that a single-payer health care system would be too expensive for the state to afford and would drive up healthcare costs even more. The complete opposite is true. Single-payer health care is proven to be less expensive, more comprehensive, and more effective than our current health care system. This is because it eliminates the largest source of waste in the healthcare system: private, for-profit health insurers. The business model of private health insurers is simple: maximize profits by denying or limiting health care. Health insurers waste $475 billion of patient dollars per year on non-medical related costs such as marketing, lobbying, administration of medical claims, and multi-million CEO salaries. Even with ObamaCare, private health insurance companies continue to enjoy record profits.⁶

It’s time to end our expensive and inefficient health care system. It's time to eliminate the middle-man between patients and doctors. It's time to implement a single-payer health care system in California. Support SB-562: The Healthy California Act.

1 http://kff.org/health-costs/poll-finding/data-note-americans-challenges-with-health-care-costs/
2 http://kff.org/report-section/ehbs-2016-section-one-cost-of-health-insurance/
3 https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/09/22/health-plan-deductibles-are-growing-seven-times-as-fast-as-wages/?utm_term=.0e647ce47461
4 https://www.healthpocket.com/healthcare-research/infostat/2017-obamacare-premiums-deductibles#.WRjDnrsrIUs
5 http://lgbtweekly.com/2017/03/30/sens-lara-and-atkins-release-key-details-on-healthy-california-act/
6 https://www.consumeraffairs.com/news/health-insurance-industry-rakes-in-billions-while-blaming-obamacare-for-losses-110116.html