APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY
________________________
CITY ATTORNEY’S OFFICE
OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL
RESOLUTION NO. _______________ C.M.S.
INTRODUCED BY
COUNCIL PRESIDENT PRO TEM SHENG THAO, VICE MAYOR REBECCA
KAPLAN, COUNCIL PRESIDNET NIKKI FORTUNATO BAS, AND
COUNCILMEMBER DAN KALB
RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF SENATE RESOLUTION 4204,
MEDICARE FOR ALL ACT 2022 (SANDERS)
WHEREAS, the United States spends nearly twice as much per capita on health care as all other comparable countries and yet ranks only 35th in the world by global health standards, including on such critical barometers as average life expectancy, infant mortality, maternal mortality, and death from preventable diseases
; and
WHEREAS, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) enacted important improvements, primarily through the expansion of Medicaid in states that have agreed to do so, and limits on some insurance industry abuses, nonetheless,that reform left tens of millions with a continuing crisis in access, cost, and quality of care
; and
WHEREAS, even after implementation of the ACA, the uninsured rate for U.S. adults has risen for four straight years up to nearly 30 mill ion residents, with the greatest increase among women, young adults, and lower-income people; and
WHEREAS, more than 40 percent of all U.S. adults under the age of 65 forego needed medical care, 30 percent fail to fill a prescription or take less than the recommended dose, and a third said they had to choose in the past year between paying for food, heating, housing, or healthcare, according to a 2018 survey by the West Health Institute and NORC at the University of Chicago; and
WHEREAS, the inability to pay medical bills continues to be a leading cause of personal bankruptcy, and people who need medical care should never face bankruptcy as a result of needing medical care; and
WHEREAS, discrimination, based on race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, s exual orientation, age, socioeconomic status, and where one lives is particularly systematic to a profit - based health care system; and
2 WHEREAS, 55 percent of the uninsured are people of color; African Americans suffer higher death rates than whites at an earlier age due to heart disease, diabetes, cancer, HIV, and infant mortality; African-American women are three to four times more likely than white women to die in childbirth; and African-American and Latino students are more likely to experience health risks due to exposure to toxins and air pollution at school; and
WHEREAS, our current employer -provided healthcare system left millions of people uninsured during the COVID-19 pandemic; and
WHEREAS, due to their profit incentive, private insurance compa nies deny up to one - fourth of all claims for care and restrict patient choice through narrow networks for doctors and hospitals, limited drug formularies, and other limits in coverage; and
WHEREAS, the Medicare for All Act,Senate Resolution , would:
● Establish guaranteed, universal health care for all U.S. residents, ● Provide comprehensive health care, including all primary care, hospital and outpatient services, dental, vision, audiology, maternity and newborn care, women’s reproductive services, mental health, prescription drugs, and long-term care services,
● Eliminate all costs for premiums, deductibles, co-pays, and other out-of- pocket costs that have caused such a crisis for tens of millions of people, ● Ensure genuine patient choice of any doctor, hospital, clinic, or other provider a patient chooses without the restrictions imposed by private insurers,
● Sharply reduce the cost of prescription drugs by authorizing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices as most of the rest of the world does, ● Protect the ability of service veterans to continue to receive their specialized care through the Veterans Administration if they choose and Native Americans to receive their medical benefits through the Indian Health Service if they choose; and
WHEREAS, nearly all U.S. residents and businesses would spend less, and usually far less, under a Medicare for All program, such as Senate Resolution 4204, than they do today for health coverage and medical, dental, vision, and other care; and
WHEREAS, various studies, both conservative and progressive, have estimated that the U.S. would save from $2 trillion to $5 trillion over 10 years over what our country is projected to spend under the current system, due to massive savings in administration costs, lower prescription drug prices, and improved efficiency through a uniform payment system with global budgeting without the waste for billing, marketing, and profit-taking; and
3 WHEREAS, the Medicare for All Act, Senate Resolution 4204 would establish a system of public financing that retains the private provider system with real patient choice and greater transparency on how our public dollars are spent; and
WHEREAS, the Medicare for All Act, Senate Resolution 4204, would establish peace of mind for everyone, relieving worry about medical bills and access to needed care through a humane system based on patient need, not ability to pay;
; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED: That the City of Oakland endorses Senate Resolution 4204 (Sanders), the Medicare for All Act that will expand health coverage and health security, eliminate health disparities, and lower health care costs for all of our community residents; and be it ; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City of Oakland will notify all of our congressional representatives of this endorsement, and urge them to co- sponsor Senate Resolution 4204 if they haven’t already.
IN COUNCIL, OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA,
PASSED BY THE FOLLOWING VOTE:
AYES - FIFE, GALLO, KALB, KAPLAN, REID, TAYLOR, THAO AND
PRESIDENT FORTUNATO BAS
NOES –
ABSENT –
ABSTENTION –
ATTEST:
ASHA REED
Acting City Clerk and Clerk of the Council of
the City of Oakland, California