Did YOUR Congressmember Join The New Medicare For All Caucus?

My congressman, New Dem Adam Schiff, didn't join the new Medicare-For-All Caucus. I bet his constituents would freak out if they know. In fact, though I'm not a betting man, I'd bet a lot on that assertion. Some of the most progressive Democrats in the country live in Schiff's district-- West Hollywood, the Hollywood Hills, Los Feliz, Hollywood, East Hollywood, Silverlake, Glendale, and Burbank. Those are Medicare-For-All neighborhoods, even if Adam Schiff isn't. This is the wrong district for him. The 3 progressive Congressmembers from from districts bordering on his-- Ted Lieu, Jimmy Gomez and Judy Chu-- immediately joined the caucus. Two more conservative Democrats from districts bordering on Schiff's district-- throw-back Brad Sherman and child rapist Tony Cárdenas-- also refused to join. What about your member of Congress. Did he or she join? If they're on this list they did (and if they're not, they didn't):

• Pramila Jayapal (D-WA)
• Keith Ellison (D-MN)
• Debbie Dingell (D-MI)
• Nanette Barragán (D-CA)
• Joyce Beatty (D-OH)
• Don Beyer (D-VA)
• Earl Blumenauer (D-OR)
• Brendan Boyle (D-PA)
• Anthony Brown (D-MD)
• Michael Capuano (D-MA)
• Andre Carson (D-IN)
• Kathy Castor (D-FL)
• Judy Chu (D-CA)
• David Cicilline (D-RI)
• Katherine Clark (D-MA)
• Yvette Clarke (D-NY)
• Lacy Clay (D-MO)
• Steve Cohen (D-TN)
• Mike Doyle (D-PA)
• Eliot Engel (D-NY)
• Adriano Espaillat (D-NY)
• Dwight Evans (D-PA)
• Lois Frankel (D-FL)
• Marcia Fudge (D-OH)
• John Garamendi (D-CA)
• Jimmy Gomez (D-CA)
• Vicente Gonzalez (D-TX)
• Al Green (D-TX)
• Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ)
• Alcee Hastings (D-FL)
• Brian Higgins (D-NY)
• Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC)
• Jared Huffman (D-CA)
• Hank Johnson (D-GA)
• Ro Khanna (D-CA)
• Brenda Lawrence (D-MI)
• Barbara Lee (D-CA)
• John Lewis (D-GA)
• Ted Lieu (D-CA)
• Zoe Lofgren (D-CA)
• Alan Lowenthal (D-CA)
• Carolyn Maloney (D-NY)
• im McGovern (D-MA)
• Jerry McNerney (D-CA)
• Grace Meng (D-NY)
• Jerrold Nadler (D-NY)
• Grace Napolitano (D-CA)
• Richard Nolan (D-MN)
• Chellie Pingree (D-ME)
• Mark Pocan (D-WI)
• Jared Polis (D-CO)
• Jamie Raskin (D-MD)
• Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA)
• Tim Ryan (D-OH)
• Jan Schakowsky (D-IL)
• Bobby Scott (D-VA)
• ose Serrano (D-NY)
• Adam Smith (D-WA)
• Darren Soto (D-FL)
• Mark Takano (D-CA)
• Dina Titus (D-NV)
• Paul Tonko (D-NY)
• Marc Veasey (D-TX)
• Nydia Velázquez (D-NY)
• Maxine Waters (D-CA)
• Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ)
• Peter Welch (D-VT)
• Frederica Wilson (D-FL)
• John Yarmuth (D-KY)

Congressmembers Karen Bass (D-CA) and Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) joined early yesterday, bringing the total to 72. Meanwhile, you'd think Jacky Rosen, a conservative freshman House Democrat in Nevada, running, incongruously, for the U.S. Senate, would have the brains to get behind something this popular. Dina Titus (D-NV) sure did.

The idea behind the Medicare for All Congressional Caucus is to help build the evidence base for Medicare for All. As chief sponsor Pramila Jayapal explained, "It will sponsor briefings on topics ranging from the basics of Medicare for All to financing to universal health care systems around the world. In development is also a clearinghouse of resources for members of Congress and their staff. Additionally, the caucus will provide an opportunity for members and their staff to interact with partners and providers across the country to gain a practical understanding of how a Medicare for All system would work. Support for Medicare for All is growing, not only among movement-builders, but within Congress. At its launch, an unprecedented 70 members had joined the caucus.

Health care must be affordable and accessible to everyone in the United States. One of the best ways to ensure health care for all is to use the system that already exists for millions of seniors over the last half century: Medicare. That is why I am so proud to be the founding co-chair of the Medicare for All Congressional Caucus. No one should be one health care crisis from bankruptcy. No one should be worried about obtaining life saving medicine due to cost or access. This caucus is committed to making sure that every American across the country has quality, affordable health care. The path forward is through Medicare for All.

"National Nurses United welcomes the inaugural Medicare for All Caucus in the House of Representatives. Every day, more Americans are rallying behind the need for fundamental reform of our flawed and fragmented health care system that denies health care to millions of our neighbors and family members. Nurses see patients every day that are harmed by this system, and we know that Medicare for All is the best solution to this crisis," said Martese Chism, RN, Vice-President, California Nurses Association / National Nurses Organizing Committee (National Nurses United). "We applaud every member of the Caucus for their commitment to Medicare for All, and extend our thanks to Representatives Jayapal, Ellison and Dingell for taking leadership in forming this caucus. We look forward to working with the caucus to finally achieve equal access to quality, therapeutic health care for every person living in the United States through a Medicare for All, single-payer system."


Nancy Altman, President, Social Security Works added, "It's long past time to improve Medicare and expand it to cover all of us. The creation of the Medicare for All Caucus in the House of Representatives is an important milestone in reaching that long overdue goal. Every person in the United States should have the right to guaranteed, high-quality health care, an essential requirement of economic security."

In a letter to his supporters yesterday, Kaniela Saito Ing wrote, "We are the majority. The majority of us want revolutionary change. We support Medicare for All, tuition-free college, and bold action on climate change. It just requires the courage and political will to stand up to corporate interests. If you believe we can win, then we need to fight together. The stakes are too high to do anything else. We help maintain the rigged status quo when we do nothing or let their cynicism get the best of us." That made me ask some of the candidates who won their primaries already but who are not being backed by the DCCC, which also doesn't back Medicare-For-All, how they feel about Congress' newest-- and most important-- caucus.

Texas progressive Dayna Steele didn't leave any doubt where she stands on this. How could she, since every campaign event she does, includes her talking about Medicare-For-All. "I would join the Medicare-For-All Caucus in Congress," she told me yesterday. "We have a lot of work to do in order to get Medicare for All passed and implemented, and part of that work includes building out a political framework in both houses of Congress. The creation of the Caucus is an important step toward our shared goal of health justice, and a healthier America. Ensuring Texans have the healthcare they need is our number one priority. This is one of the most important things Congress needs to address. Healthcare pays dividends-- healthy people work, pay taxes, create opportunities, and give back to their communities."

Mike Siegel is another progressive Texan who won his primary and finds himself abandoned by a DCCC that is very not-enthusiastic about Medicare-for-All. (None of the DCCC heavy-weights, like Ben Ray Luján, Denny Heck and Cheri Bustos, have joined the new caucus.) Siegel is running against anti-healthcare Trump rubber-stamp Michael McCaul. "My first priority will be healthcare for all," he told us. "Too many people in the Texas 10th are at risk, without sufficient care, on the brink of bankruptcy if a health emergency arises. I am horrified that my opponent, Rep. McCaul, celebrates his votes to cut healthcare for tens of millions of Americans. Healthcare is a human right, and I will fight for universal access by joining the Medicare for All caucus, working with nurses and retirees, and putting my shoulder to the wheel in this essential effort to strengthen the safety net and ensure all Americans have a fair shot."

JD Scholten is the progressive Democrat running for the Iowa seat held by anti-healthcare fanatic Steve King. "Healthcare," he told us, "is the number one issue in IA-04, like it is in many places. Take farmers for example, they don’t have employer benefits. They’re worried about healthcare as much as they’re worried about tariffs and low commodity prices. Medicare-for-All will not only provide the care we need, it would also simplify our complicated lives."