WASHINGTON, April 29 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), alongside Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) and Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.), today introduced the Medicare for All Act. Hundreds of nurses, health care providers and workers from around the nation joined the lawmakers for a press conference in front of the Capitol.
In America today, despite spending twice as much per person on health care as other wealthy nations, more than 85 million Americans are uninsured or underinsured, one out of every four Americans cannot afford their prescription drugs, over half a million people go bankrupt due to medically-related debt, and more than 60,000 die because they cannot afford to go to a doctor.
“The American people understand, as I do, that health care is a human right, not a privilege and that we must end the international embarrassment of the United States being the only major country on earth that does not guarantee health care to all of its citizens,” said Sanders. “It is not acceptable to me, nor to the American people, that over 85 million people today are either uninsured or underinsured. Today, there are millions of people who would like to go to a doctor but cannot afford to do so. This is an outrage. In America, your health and your longevity should not be dependent on your wealth. Health care is a human right that all Americans, regardless of income, are entitled to and they deserve the best health care that our country can provide.”
“It is a travesty when 85 million people are uninsured or underinsured and millions more are drowning in medical debt in the richest nation on Earth,” said Jayapal. “We don’t suffer from scarcity in America, we suffer from greed. That’s most clear in our broken health care system, which is why we need Medicare for All. People deserve and want comprehensive health care that covers mental health, long-term care, reproductive care, dental, vision and hearing, all without copays, private insurance premiums, sky-high deductibles or other hidden fees. Health care is a human right, that is exactly why it’s time to pass Medicare for All.”
“Every American has the right to health care, period. If you’re sick, you should be able to go to the doctor without being worried about the cost of treatment or prescription medicine. Too many families must decide between putting food on the table and getting medical care that they desperately need,” said Dingell. “A health care system that ties coverage to employment will always leave patients vulnerable. It’s flat-out wrong and Medicare for All would put a stop to it. We’ve been fighting this fight since the 1940s, when my father-in-law helped author the first universal health care bill. It’s time to get this done.”
Under this legislation, Medicare would provide comprehensive health care to every American with no premiums, no co-payments and no deductibles. It would also expand Medicare to include dental, hearing, and vision care, and it would give every American the freedom to choose their doctors without endless paperwork or fighting their insurance company. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that Medicare for All would save our health care system $650 billion a year. Further, researchers at Yale University have estimated that Medicare for All would save 68,000 lives a year.
This legislation would also create a health care system that finally puts people over profits. In fact, since 2001, the top health care companies in America spent 95 percent of their profits, $2.6 trillion, not to make Americans healthy but to make their CEOs and stockholders obscenely rich. While nearly one out of four Americans cannot afford the life-saving medicine their doctors prescribe, ten top pharma companies made $102 billion in profits in 2024. Meanwhile, the CEOs of just 4 prescription drug companies – Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, Eli Lilly, and Merck – together made over $100 million last year.
The legislation has 104 cosponsors in the House and has 16 cosponsors in the Senate – an increase in the number of Senate cosponsors from last Congress – including Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.).
"Nurses see the failure of our country’s profit-driven health care system every time we clock in to work,” said Nancy Hagans, President of National Nurses United. “In the richest country on earth, nobody should be forced to choose between taking their medications and putting food on the table. Yet countless families are pushed to the breaking point while greedy corporations charge astronomical, ludicrous fees for care that our patients have every right to receive. Nurses are fighting for a future in which our patients’ health is put first always and that’s why we are proud to continue our support for Medicare for All. When we guarantee health care for all, corporations and billionaires will no longer be able to deny anyone the care that they need.”
“We are long overdue for a universal health care system that guarantees care for all — free of copays, deductibles, and job-based coverage restrictions,” said Dr. Diljeet K. Singh, M.D., Dr.P.H., and President of Physicians for a National Health Program. “With the passage of the Medicare for All Act, physicians can focus on healing patients, not battling insurers over denials and delays. Patients will finally be able to seek care without the constant fear of crushing medical bills. Physicians for a National Health Program proudly stands with our legislators in the fight to make excellent health care a reality for everyone in America.”
“As Donald Trump, Robert Kennedy and Congressional Republicans rush to strip health care from millions of Americans, we know this: We must not only block their cruel cuts but move America to a system that provides health care to everyone as a matter of right,” said Robert Weissman, co-president of Public Citizen. “America spends much more than other wealthy countries on health care only to have the worst health outcomes. The system works for health insurers, Big Pharma, hospital chains and private equity firms – but no one else. Medicare for All would ensure everyone in America can get the care they need throughout their lives. It is the realistic, humane, just and efficient reform we need.”
“Postal workers know the value of affordable, universal services, grounded in a commitment to putting people over profits. That’s the type of service we are committed to provide communities across the country, day in and day out,” said Mark Dimondstein, President of American Postal Workers Union. “For too long, greedy corporations and their Wall Street investors have been able to deny the people of the country the quality, affordable, universal health care working people deserve. Medicare for All, health care as a human right, will make us all healthier and financially better off. A health care system that works for working people, not the profits of the insurance companies, is long overdue. It’s time for Medicare for All.”
“Health care should be a human right. But every time we negotiate with a boss for the right to see a doctor, they nickel and dime us until people have to choose between their health and putting food on the table,” said Shawn Fain, President of the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW). “We're sick of having to go on strike just to have decent health care. We're sick of corporate America asking us to give up raises, retirement security, or work-life balance at the bargaining table so working-class people can avoid medical bankruptcy. Our current health care system is a con job that only works for the billionaire class. Medicare for All is common sense, and it's what the working class needs. The UAW is proud to support this bill.”
“If you want to renew the public's faith in our political system, pass the Medicare for All Act of 2025,” said Alan Minsky, Executive Director, Progressive Democrats of America. “This one piece of legislation will instantly end the era, which has lasted far too long, when profits and wealth accumulation are more important than human life, including yours. MFA will return the general welfare, and the well-being of every individual, to the heart of our social contract. That will renew faith in America.”
“Health care is a right, not a privilege. The reintroduction of the Medicare for All Act is a crucial step toward ending a system that profits from people's pain,” said Analilia Mejia and DaMareo Cooper, Co-Executive Directors of Popular Democracy. “Too many Americans are forced to choose between paying their rent and paying for life-saving medication, while corporations rake in billions. Medicare for All isn’t just a policy—it’s the lifeline working families desperately need. Our communities deserve a health care system that prioritizes people over profits. We will fight until we win the health care we deserve.”
“Health care is a human right and a basic need. Yet instead of getting health care, Americans get delays, denials, and bills they cannot afford. Today, predatory insurance CEOs are poised to reap the windfall from the tax scam giveaways earmarked for billionaires and corporations. The oligarchs that put Donald Trump and Dr. Oz in power want everything we have. We get sicker, make impossible choices, and go broke. They boost the stock prices of corporations – like UnitedHealth – that profit off our pain, and buy more mansions and yachts. We can put an end to those warped priorities through Medicare for All,” said Sulma Arias, executive director of People’s Action Institute. “Working people have made this the wealthiest nation in the history of the world, and there is more than enough if we don’t let the corporate crooks and billionaires steal it. So it’s time to choose: Our health care or their greed?”
Read the bill text here.