So I keep trying to research Harris's position on healthcare, and it's vague. She seems to be backing off of single payer, but has no clear vision for healthcare yet, no position that can be supported or attacked. But, I did want to address a couple of the more standard talking points I see from the center against Harris's ideas.
1) A robust healthcare system will raise taxes on the middle class!
"Oh noes, the horror!"
Okay, but look. The middle class is gonna pay anyway. Like, to defend BERNIE'S plan, let me say this. His main taxes were a 7.5% payroll tax on employers, and a 4% tax on households making more than $29000 a year. Harris didn't even wanna do this, claiming she wanted to raise the threshold to $100k in her plan and make up for it with taxes on the rich. I cant vouch for her plan as her math has always been kinda fuzzy. But people still complained about how $100k is middle class and blah blah blah, 37% of households.
Now, I do wanna go back to the whole "you're paying anyway" thing, but let's focus on the 100k thing. Look, your median income is $70k household wise. $100kis still middle-ish, but one thing I hate about centrists is they keep trying to consider people who make six figures and are in the top 2-20% of the population to be "middle class". Just "upper middle class". YOURE NOT MIDDLE CLASS, YOU'RE NOT MIDDLE ANYTHING!
I'll say this. $150k, let's go with that. thats what my UBI break even point would be for a household with 2 adults. Beyond that, you're not really middle. Biden is trying to carve out this weird electorate where no one under like $400k pays higher taxes. The threshold for the top 1% is like $600k. So thats ridiculous. Like, I'm sorry, if youre top 20%, you should pay more taxes. You're the ones actually benefitting from the economy and all of the economic growth of the past 40 years, it's only right you pay it back and pay it forward.
Now, for the rest of us. 7.5% payroll tax 4% household tax. Okay, so taxes go up. But...premiums...go down. You're no longer paying hundreds of month to a private company only for them to not cover anything and stick you with a $5000 deductible. I mean, that's the thing. Yes, your taxes go up. So what? You're no longer throwing thousands at healthcare in a private setting and you probably save money. Your typical household pays 11% of their income on healthcare, 4% in taxes in exchange for that is actually a good deal that SAVES YOU MONEY!
As for the 7.5% employer side payroll tax, that literally just replaces existing private spending. Your employer contributes that much to your healthcare plans as it is. Now instead, they pay a tax of roughly the same amount. So it's basically just replacing one form of spending with another.
As such, idk why people complain about how universal healthcare raises taxes. Do Americans hate something so much if it's a "tax" that they'd rather pay more as a rivate service? if so, americans are fricking dumb, and I'm not gonna apologize for that remark.
Anyway, that brings me to the next point I want to discuss.
2) "But what if I like my private plan?"
Okay, but who actually does? All I hear americans do is complain endlessly about how their health insurance is screwing them over and they gotta pay thousands for something after spending hundreds a month on insurance. It's nonsense. Who are these people who like this crap? Once again, it seems like we're just allowing the 6 figures yuppie class to dictate policy for the rest of us, and we need to stop appealing to these people as "swing voters". This is what corporate dems want. Actual americans who arent wealthy and privileged hate the existing system and want change. Even a lot of MAGA voters want change. They just dont know what it should be.
Now, again, Ive softened on single payer due to my own reasons. Mainly costs and wanting to fund a UBI instead. I have become more pragmatic, and I have come around to the idea of private insurance coexisting with a public option. But I'm not gonna be like "yeah man private insurance is so amazing." It's not. It sucks. Healthcare is inherently broken in the US and its the for profit model that makes it so. Honestly, I think we need universal healthcare to solve the problem, and im tired of liberal band aids that involve some weirdo expansion of the ACA. ACA is that uncanny valley of suck where conservatives hate it for doing anything at all and lefties hate it for not doing enough. We wouldnt be still having this debate if ACA actually fixed things.
That said, I support some sort of universal healthcare. Could be single payer, could be a public option. But do SOMETHING here. Im sick of centrists saying we cant because we gotta appeal to upper class people who used to vote for john mccain and mitt romney back in the day. I wish they'd go back to the republicans. I wish theyd take their party back from trump, and i wish we could move left by getting working class people on our side who would benefit from actual progressive policy. I hate how things are realigning. I hate MAGA, I hate corporate democrats. This is why I've been disaffected for the past decade. And now Kamala Harris could do nice things, but I wonder if she will because she has to appeal to these weirdos who IMO dont even belong on the left. It's crazy. Ugh. I know Harris is better than Biden and better than Trump, but I really have a strong dislike of these centrist types who are trying to keep the democrats centrist and push harris back to the right. I dont get along with them and I dont see the world the same way as them. I hate being in the same party as these people as they hold us back.
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