Trump Enacts Limited M4A

Trump announced a limited form of Medicare For All, funding testing and treatment for pandemic patients during the current crisis. It comes with the stipulation that patients will not be double-billed, something which was not even included in ACA billing procedures. Meaning doctors, labs, etc cannot bill a patient with the claim that they are not part of the same medical treatment system, which has always been ludicrous.

No matter how you feel about Trump, this action deserves kudos. I know many will offer criticisms which are justly deserved that this comes rather late. Still, if this is made retroactive for those already affected, it becomes less of a point.

Yet there is a very valid criticism to be leveled here. The fact that this policy focuses solely on one specific illness. Millions of Americans are being left without health insurance during this crisis. Some suffer chronic illness, others will suffer separate acute illnesses during this time and have no medical insurance coverage, leaving them at risk of catastrophic financial consequences or long term serious medical repercussions which they would not otherwise suffer if not for the suspension or complete loss of medical insurance at this time.

So this policy should be expanded to include all uninsured Americans during this time for basic medical care of life and health-threatening illnesses or injuries. Obviously, elective and cosmetic procedures should be excluded.