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We’ve gotten a few more answers in on the four questions Democracy for America, Open Left, and Health Care for America Now have been asking Senators. Here’s what we’ve been asking:
- Do you support a public healthcare option as part of reform?
- Do you support a public healthcare option that is ready on day one?
- Do you support a public healthcare option that is national, available everywhere, and accountable to our government?
- Do you support a public healthcare option that has the clout to establish rates with providers and big drug companies?
First up, Senator Gillibrand from New York. We have been waiting for an answer to question four from Senator Gillibrand, and in her interview with Howard Dean last week, we got it. Watch:
Gillibrand clearly endorses a Medicare-like public healthcare option in this video, and Medicare has the clout to establish rates with providers, so Senator Gillibrand is a yes for question four.
Senator Cantwell from Washington has also sent a letter back to a constituent, answering three out of four questions. Here is the relevent paragraph:
Let me be clear: a public option needs to be part of health care reform. I am pushing for a public option that will keep insurance companies honest by competing to drive down costs and improve quality nation-wide. This plan needs to be accountable to the people and must work to provide the best coverage for the best price.
She supports a national public option that can establish rates, thus providing the "best price" for health coverage.
We’ve also received an answer of "maybe" on all questions from Senator Begich of Alaska.
Let’s keep those answers coming! Click here to email your Senators and ask them where they stand.
The updated chart of supporters and opposition is below.
Likely Supporters
| STATE/SENATOR | Public Option? | Available Day One? | Nationally Available? | Can Bargain for Rates? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AK – Begich (D) | Maybe (via email) | Maybe (via email) | Maybe (via email) | Maybe (via email) |
| AR – Lincoln (D) | Maybe | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| AR – Pryor (D) | Maybe | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| CA – Boxer (D) | Yes | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| CA – Feinstein (D) | Yes | Yes | Maybe | Dodges (via email) |
| CO – Bennet (D) | Yes | Dodges (via email) | Maybe | Dodges (via email) |
| CO – Udall (D) | Yes | Dodges (via email) | Maybe | Dodges (via email) |
| CT- Dodd (D) | Yes | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) |
| CT – Lieberman (I) | No | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| DE – Carper (D) | Maybe | |||
| DE – Kaufman (D) | Yes | |||
| FL – Bill Nelson (D) | Maybe (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| GA – Isakson (R) | Maybe | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| HI – Akaka (D) | Yes | |||
| HI – Inouye (D) | Yes | |||
| IA – Harkin (D) | Yes | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) |
| IL – Burris (D) | Yes | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| IL – Durbin (D) | Yes | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| IN – Bayh (D) | Maybe | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| LA – Landrieu (D) | Maybe | No | No | No |
| MA – Kerry (D) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| MA – Kennedy (D) | Yes | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) |
| MD – Cardin (D) | Yes | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| MD – Mikulski (D) | Yes | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) |
| ME – Collins (R) | No | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| ME – Snowe (R) | Maybe | |||
| MI – Levin (D) | Yes | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| MI – Stabenow (D) | Yes | |||
| MN – Franken (D) | Yes (HCAN signer) | |||
| MN – Klobuchar (D) | Unknown | |||
| MO – McCaskill (D) | Yes | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| MT – Baucus (D) | Maybe | |||
| MT – Tester (D) | Maybe | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| NC – Hagan (D) | Yes | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) |
| ND – Conrad (D) | Maybe | Yes | No | Yes |
| ND – Dorgan (D) | Yes | Maybe | Yes | Yes |
| NE – Ben Nelson (D) | Maybe | |||
| NH – Shaheen (D) | Yes | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| NJ – Lautenberg (D) | Yes | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| NJ – Menendez (D) | Yes | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| NM – Bingaman (D) | Yes | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) |
| NM – Udall (D) | Yes | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| NV – Reid (D) | Yes | |||
| NY – Gillibrand (D) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| NY – Schumer (D) | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| OH – Brown (D) | Yes | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes | Yes (supporting HELP bill) |
| OR – Merkley (D) | Yes | Yes (via email) | Yes (via email) | Yes (via email) |
| OR – Wyden (D) | Maybe | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| PA – Casey (D) | Yes | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) |
| PA – Specter (D) | Yes | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| RI – Reed (D) | Yes | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) |
| RI – Whitehouse (D) | Yes | |||
| SD – Johnson (D) | Unknown | |||
| VA – Warner (D) | Maybe | Dodges (via email) | No | Dodges (via email) |
| VA – Webb (D) | Yes | |||
| VT – Leahy (D) | Yes | |||
| VT – Sanders (I) | Yes | Yes | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) |
| WA – Cantwell (D) | Yes | Dodges (via email) | Yes | Yes |
| WA – Murray (D) | Yes | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill) | Yes (supporting HELP bill)) |
| WI – Feingold (D) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| WI – Kohl (D) | Maybe (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| WV – Byrd (D) | Unknown | |||
| WV – Rockefeller (D) | Yes | Yes |
Likely Opposition
| STATE/SENATOR | Public Option? | Available Day One? | Nationally Available? | Can Bargain for Rates? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AK – Murkowski (R) | ||||
| AL – Sessions (R) | ||||
| AL – Shelby (R) | No | – | – | – |
| AZ – Kyl (R) | No | – | – | – |
| AZ – McCain (R) | No | – | – | – |
| FL – Martinez (R) | No (via email) | – | – | – |
| GA – Chambliss (R) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| IA – Grassley (R) | No | – | – | – |
| ID – Crapo (R) | No | – | – | – |
| ID – Risch (R) | ||||
| IN – Lugar (R) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) | Dodges (via email) |
| KS – Brownback (R) | No | – | – | – |
| KS – Roberts (R) | No | – | – | – |
| KY – Bunning (R) | No | – | – | – |
| KY – McConnell (R) | No | – | – | – |
| LA – Vitter (R) | ||||
| MO – Bond (R) | ||||
| MS – Cochran (R) | ||||
| MS – Wicker (R) | No | – | – | – |
| NC – Burr (R) | No | – | – | – |
| NE – Johanns (R) | No | – | – | – |
| NH – Gregg (R) | No | – | – | – |
| NV – Ensign (R) | No | – | – | – |
| OH – Voinovich (R) | ||||
| OK – Coburn (R) | No | – | – | – |
| OK – Inhofe (R) | ||||
| SC – Demint (R) | No | – | – | – |
| SC – Graham (R) | No | – | – | – |
| SD – Thune (R) | ||||
| TN – Alexander (R) | No | – | – | – |
| TN – Corker (R) | No | – | – | – |
| TX – Cornyn (R) | No | – | – | – |
| TX – Hutchinson (R) | No | – | – | – |
| UT – Bennett (R) | No | – | – | – |
| UT – Hatch (R) | No | – | – | – |
| WY – Barrasso (R) | No | – | – | – |
| WY – Enzi (R) | No | – | – | – |
(also posted at the NOW! blog)
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4 Comments
Sorry to get hung up on what ”is” is, but by ”Day One” do we mean as soon as it’s reasonably possible to set up an agency to do it, or are there some other qualifiers? I’m about to write to Sen. Cantwell about this, and I’d like to be as specific as possible to avoid confusion or obfuscation.
The definition is setting it up as soon as reasonably possible without conditions to it. As in, no trigger.
The only reason the U.S. doesn’t have a Single-Payer Health Care system is…Link
Call Congress and the White House and demand,
MEDICARE/SINGLE-PAYER TYPE HEALTH CARE FOR ALL NOW!
I’m not surprised that Chambliss dodged by email. He was probably out on the golf course with Tiger Woods. He is my senator along with Johnny Isakson. I don’t expect either one to support a public option. When I write to them, sometimes I get no answer and sometimes I just get an automated response.