By Chris Woodward
A new poll finds Americans like the idea of 'Medicare for all,' but only the initial sound of it.
The poll from the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation also finds that support for "Medicare for all" drops when people are asked if they support higher taxes and waiting for care.
Merrill Matthews, Ph.D., of The Institute for Policy Innovation (IPI) has been saying so for months.
"Because seniors like their Medicare, it has a generally popular sound out there. So when you say, 'Medicare for all,' that sounds like I'm getting the same thing Grandma and Grandpa got, and that's great. But when you start asking questions and details, support begins to drop," he explains.
"Medicare for all" became a household name of sorts during Senator Bernie Sanders' (I-Vermont) unsuccessful campaign for the 2016 Democratic Party's presidential nomination. At the time, some Democrats were reluctant to back the idea. For example, John Podesta, Hillary Clinton's campaign chairman, was quoted as saying Sanders' healthcare plan "sucks."
OneNewsNow contacted Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Sanders for comment on the Kaiser Poll findings but did not receive a response.
Matthews doubts they will say anything.
"Either that or they simply disregard the findings," he submits.
Matthews adds that Bernie Sanders' idea is not actually taking the Medicare program and expanding it.
"It is a restructuring of the healthcare system to make it a government-run single-payer system." he says. "He's tacked on 'Medicare for all' as a marketing tool because seniors like Medicare and it's worked well so far."