Universal health care proposal gets first test in California

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

58% : Voters overwhelmingly rejected a 1994 ballot initiative that would have created a universal health care system.
57% : They hope that separating the idea of a universal health care system from the question of how to pay for it will give them a better chance of getting the bills through and eventually, getting voters to approve it.
56% : This year, Democrats in the state Assembly have filed two bills: one that would create the universal health care system and set its rules, the other would lay out how to pay for everything by raising taxes on some wealthier individuals and larger businesses.
55% : The plan for universal health care requires at least a two-thirds vote in both houses of the state Legislature.
54% : Progressives have tried for years to create a government-funded universal health care system to replace the one that relies on private insurance.
50% : State lawmakers in Vermont have tried and failed to implement their own universal health care system.
48% : Universal health care has been debated for decades in the United States, most recently during the 2020 Democratic presidential primary during the campaign of U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders.
40% : The California Taxpayers Association, which opposes the plan, says it would raise taxes by $163 billion per year on businesses and individuals.

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