How Tragedy Created a Single-Payer Advocate

This is episode 68, “How Tragedy Created a Single-Payer Advocate.”

My guest, Scott Desnoyers, became a supporter and advocate for single-payer health care after tragedy struck his family, and his story provides a powerful lesson on why we need Medicare for All. 

Do not miss this episode as Mr. Desnoyers explains how tragedy caused him to become an advocate for Medicare for All.

Note:
As near as I can tell, the numbers from two reports may have been conflated. A Yale study published in February 2020 stated that 68,000 lives would be saved by Medicare for All. Here is the link: https://www.thelancet.com/article/S0140-6736(19)33019-3/fulltext. 

That study also said, "We also project that the Medicare for All Act would save more than 68 500 (68,000) lives every year, compared with the status quo. If the Affordable Care Act were to be repealed, we would expect an additional annual loss of more than 38 500 (38,500) lives. Compared with health-care access before the Affordable Care Act, the legislation proposed by Senator Sanders, would save 107 000 (107,000) lives annually." I think that is where the 100,000 figure came from. 

As for 26,000 dying from lack of insurance, I think that figure came from a Families-USA study from June 2012. Here is the link: https://familiesusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Dying-for-Coverage.pdf. That study said, "Across the nation, 26,100 people between the ages of 25 and 64 died prematurely due to a lack of health coverage in 2010.