Montgomery County Council and Progressive Maryland call for Medicare for all.
Today the Montgomery County Council, in partnership with Progressive Maryland, introduced a resolution calling on the U.S. Congress to enact Medicare for All.
According to a County press release:
“Access to high-quality health care should be a fundamental right for every American. The Montgomery County Council stands united in support of the Medicare for All Act of 2021 and calls on the U.S. Congress to provide national health insurance for every Montgomery County resident and all people across our nation. We must build a national health care system that would end health disparities, effectively control costs, and assure everyone equal access.“
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the fragility of our employment-based health care system at a time when people across our nation and here in Montgomery County need health care more than ever before. The public health crisis has also laid bare existing racial inequities in our health care system for Black, Latino, and Indigenous people that have been perpetuated by systemic racism.“
Despite important gains made by the Affordable Care Act, 32.8 million Americans lack health insurance. Here in Montgomery County, its estimated that nearly 74,000 adults are uninsured, and more than 118,000 residents are underinsured including workers making low wages, part-time employees, contractors, and employees of many small businesses.“
If action is not taken to expand health care coverage on the national level, the growth of health care costs will continue, more residents will be unable to access essential health care services, and racial disparities will widen. Congress must act now to protect the health and well-being of our residents, our community, and our nation.”
