The United States National Health Care Act (Expanded and Improved Medicare for All Act) (H.R. 676), is a bill submitted to the United States House of Representatives by Representative John Conyers Jr., D-MI, which as of July 9, 2009 has 85 recorded cosponsors. It was first introduced, with 25 cosponsors, in 2003,[1] and reintroduced each session since then. The act calls for the creation of a universal single-payer health care system in the United States, the rough equivalent of the United Kingdom's National Health Service and other similar systems in existence in every other industrialized nation; in which the government would provide every resident health care free of out-of-pocket expense, funded instead through U.S. federal taxes.
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| Long title | To provide for comprehensive health insurance coverage for all United States residents, and for other purposes. |
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| Acronyms (colloquial) | USNHA |
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In order to eliminate disparate treatment between richer and poorer Americans, the Act would also prohibit private insurers from covering any treatment or procedure already covered by the Act. The bill is currently in the House Energy and Commerce Committee, as well as the Committees on Ways and Means, and Natural Resources.
H.R. 676 has drawn significant attention beginning in July 2007 because of the release of the Michael Moore documentary Sicko which focuses on the status of health care in the United States, which is the only developed country which does not have universal health care.[2][3] The DVD edition of the film also included a segment (Sicko Goes To Washington) promoting the bill.[4][5][6]
Recently, with Barack Obama's suggestion that new overall health care legislation be passed and implemented in August 2009,[citation needed] various single-payer advocacy groups, claiming that they have been excluded from the self-proclaimed healthcare policy debates fronted by Max Baucus, have stepped up physical direct action to disrupt such sessions and forcibly insert themselves into the policy debate.[citation needed] Due to that pressure, Baucus agreed to meet and talk with single-payer advocates as of May 2009;[citation needed] however, single-payer supporters continue to claim they are excluded from any serious consideration, and indeed representatives have admitted to the wholesale exclusion of any single-payer consideration for the fall of 2009.[citation needed]
Medical tourism
Since the act covers all "residents", a section was added requiring the Secretary of HHS to create a rule addressing the possibility of medical tourism (Section 101(e)).
See also
References
- ^ H.R. 676
- ^ Insuring America's Health: Principles and Recommendations, Institute of Medicine at the National Academies of Science.
- ^ The Case For Single Payer, Universal Health Care For The United States, John R. Battista, M.D. and Justine McCabe, Ph.D.
- ^ American Health Care Reform.org
- ^ Towards Universal Health Care
- ^ Universal Health Plan is Endorsed The Boston Globe August 13, 2003
External links
- H.R. 676 – Information on the act from the Library of Congress Database
- Congressman John Conyers, Jr., sponsor of the bill, official U.S. House website
- HR676.org - A grassroots effort to inform the public about H.R. 676