Here it is: the late Senator Ted Kennedy's Medicare for All Act

[Douglas Carpenter]

Official summary - Senate bill 2229 (2006):

Medicare for All Act - Amends the Social Security Act to add a new title XXII (Medicare for All) under which: (1) each eligible individual is entitled to benefits which include the full range and scope of benefits available under the original fee-for-service program under parts A (Hospital Insurance) and B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare), with parity in coverage of mental health benefits, subject to appropriate cost sharing; (2) each enrollee is free to choose his or her own doctor and private health plan; and (3) benefits are not less than the benefits offered to Members of Congress and Federal employees under FEHBP (Federal Employees Health Benefits Program).
Establishes the Medicare for All Trust Fund.

Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose: (1) on the income of every individual a tax equal to 1.7% of wages received; (2) on every employer an excise tax equal to 7% of the wages paid to each employee; and (3) on the self-employment income of every individual, a tax equal to the applicable percentage of the self-employment income for such taxable year.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/8/26/772564/-Kennedys-Medicare-for-All-act

the full text of the late Senator Ted Kennedy's Medicare for All bill:

Text of S. 2229 <109th>: Medicare for All Act bill:

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=s109-2229

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[Dr.Phool]

1. Also known as HR.676 in the House companion version.

They could have done this thing right the first time.

[leveymg]

2. Still can be done by splitting the Bill and Reconciliation

Medicare for All can be part of HCR by simple majorities (51/218), if we get our act together and demand it from Obama and Congress. Don't settle for anything less.

[Douglas Carpenter]

3. If President Obama made Medicare for All into a moral cause to fight for

And relentlessly emphasized the reasonableness and moral imperative of Medicare for All - the public would almost certainly rally behind him and it would be very hard to campaign against - given the bipartisan overwhelming popularity of Medicare.

At the very, very least, we could end up with a very strong public option open to everyone who wants it.

Unfortunately, single-payer of any kind was taken off the table from day one and now we don't even have a weak public option. We have a bill loaded with mandates that are the insurance industries dream, a plan that most Americans don't want.

Last year the battle cry was, "health care for all!" now the battle cry is "okay, we admit that its not a very good bill. But, its better than nothing". Not exactly a winning campaign slogan.

[SmileyRose]

6. President Obama made a strategic choice to leave it to Congress

Remember the Clintons hashed out a plan and then told Congress what to do. (more or less). Congress did not take kindly to being robbed of the opportunity to bloviate for the folks back home and use the legislation as a way to enrich their bank accounts and jockey for position. (aka screw America first)

President Obama decide to do the opposite and stay behind the scenes so Congress can have all the credit. Well that did not work out so well because he's getting all the "blame" anyway.

[DailyGrind51]

4. An unrealized dream, unfortunately

[annabanana]

5. This is, of course, what the Country deperately needs...

Not all the reach arounds to the insurance industry.

[Faryn Balyncd]

7. This is what we need.

k and r



:hi:

[GeorgeGist]

8. More Hope ...

Senator Kennedy?

[GeorgeGist]

9. delete dupe

[Douglas Carpenter]

10. if the Democrats ran on this or at the very least having the option

to choose Medicare or private insurance, I cannot help but think the Republicans would have a lot of trouble campaigning against it.

[Political Heretic]

11. They could actually do that through reconciliation, but they won't.

It couldn't be permanent through reconciliation, but all you need to do is look at the legislation Bush passed via reconciliation, including medicare cuts/"reform", to see that it totally could be done.

Democrats are cowards and they don't play for our team, our team being the team of working American families and the underprivileged.

The sooner we accept this, the sooner we could go about fixing this party.