Everybody Knows Charlie...or they should.

A couple of years ago I wrote about my friend Rebecca Wood and her adorable daughter Charlie:

Rebecca recently testified in front of Congress on behalf of Medicare for All. Instead of trying to tell her and Charlie's story second-hand, I'm presenting her written testimony verbatim (with her permission). It's a testament to both of their strength and preserverence, but also to how unbelievably screwed up our healthcare system can be.

We may disagree about the the best route forward to achieve it, but our ultimate goal is pretty much the same: Universal, quality, comprehensive healthcare coverage for everyone in the country, without the bureaucratic paperwork nightmare which so many people face in dealing with the system today.

The trailer above is a documentary in progress being made about Rebecca, Charlie and the ongoing fight for universal healthcare coverage:

Currently in production, “Everybody Knows Charlie” is a documentary which explores the journey of Rebecca Wood and her daughter, Charlie, as they fight to save the ACA. From Kamala Harris to Nancy Pelosi, Charlie has won the hearts and minds of many on Capitol Hill with her strength and courage in overcoming the challenges of extreme prematurity and helping to ensure everyone has access to healthcare as a right.

Regardless of what your position on the issue is, "Medicare for All" is not in the cards for the next few years...but a dramatic expansion of what Medicare covers as well as a significant upgrade of the ACA are within our grasp in the next few months.

I don't know how many of these bullets will make the final cut of the American Families Plan, but as I showed last week, all of them are both financially and potentially politically feasible right now IF every House & Senate Democrat gets on board:

• Medicare: Add dental coverage
• Medicare: Add vision coverage
• Medicare: Add hearing aid coverage
• Medicare: Add a cap on out of pocket prescription drug costs
• Medicare: Lower the eligibility age from 65 to 60

• ACA: Permanently eliminate the subsidy cliff
• ACA: Permanently upgrade the premium subsidies
• ACA: Upgrade the benchmark plan from Silver to Gold
• ACA: Expand cost sharing subsidies up to 400% FPL
• ACA: Upgrade the cost sharing subsidy formula
• ACA: Appropriate CSR payments & replace Silver Loading