Press Release: 2022-11-10

Massachusetts voters support single-payer health care

Mass-Care: the Massachusetts Campaign for Single Payer Health Care

1534 Tremont Street, Boston MA 02120

Contacts:

    Stephanie Nakajima, Executive Director, 617-297-8011 

    Jon Weissman, Board Chair, 413-250-5267

For Immediate Release

On November 8, Massachusetts voters overwhelmingly supported single-payer health care in 20 State Representative districts across the state (listed below). Question 5, a non-binding public policy question, won in every district where it was on the ballot. (It appeared as Question 7 in Hingham.) 

“The majority of Commonwealth residents support Medicare for All,” said Stephanie Nakajima, Executive Director of Mass-Care: the Massachusetts Campaign for Single Payer Health Care, citing past ballot questions and polling. “Since Mass-Care’s founding in 1995, we’ve had 38 such local ballot questions in a variety of state representative districts and one state senate district and the City of Somerville, all passing handily. This year, we covered 20 more districts and further demonstrated the widespread support that single-payer reform has across the state. This is an important message to our legislators, who need to fight for patients at the State House.” 

40% of the state legislature currently cosponsors the single-payer bill, An Act Establishing Medicare for All in Massachusetts. “Given this broad mandate to go ahead with Medicare for All legislation, the next state legislature should finally give the bill a proper hearing and pass it out of Committee rather than allowing it to die without a full vote of the legislature,” said Nakajima. 

The 20 districts include some places where Question 1 - the Fair Share amendment - did not win, including Hingham, Cohasset, and Weymouth on the South Shore, Berlin and Southborough in Central Mass., and West Springfield, Agawam, and East Longmeadow in Western Mass. 

The vote passed with 61% support in House Speaker Ron Mariano’s district, 3rd Norfolk. Rep. Mariano is not a supporter of single-payer health care. 

In Boston, the question won by 77% in 12th Suffolk (Mattapan, Milton, Dorchester), by 68% in 13th Suffolk (Dorchester) and by 88% in 15th Suffolk (Jamaica Plain). The question also won by 85% in Cambridge and 75% in Pittsfield. 

As noted, this question has been put to the ballot before - in 2010, the single-payer ballot question passed in Marlborough with 54% of the vote. This year the city passed the question with 63% of the vote. 

Even though nearly all Massachusetts residents have some form of health insurance, people are deeply dissatisfied with a health care system that leaves patients with significant out-of-pocket costs. “Voters want corporations out of our health care dollars and decisions,” said Nakajima. “For all our overspending in the Commonwealth on health care, the leading cause of bankruptcy in Massachusetts is medical debt. That’s not a sign of a functional health care system.” 

This vote coincides with the announcement of another huge health insurance premium increase for the individual and small group market. The Health Connector approved premium increases for 2023 of up to 13% for some plans. “Even from a purely fiscal perspective - setting aside the human suffering of a profit-driven health care system - this is unsustainable,” said Nakajima. 

The Massachusetts Medicare for All Act would eliminate the role of health insurance companies and establish a public trust fund that would cover health care for everyone in the Commonwealth from cradle to grave. Without health insurance companies imposing “provider networks”, people could pick the doctor and hospitals of their choice. Instead of the current system which establishes different coverage levels and tiers of “eligible services” for individuals depending on their plan, all necessary care would be covered under one comprehensive plan, including hospital care, outpatient care, reproductive care including abortion, dental, hearing, eye, and long-term care.

Health insurance would be financed progressively through payroll taxes and would be free at the point of service - no premiums, co-pays, or out-of-pocket costs. Employers will pay a 7.5% or 8% payroll tax, depending on size, and employees will pay a 2.5% tax; all rates exclude the first $20,000 of payroll. This results in large savings for the bottom 90% of Commonwealth residents. 

The question reads, "Shall the Representative from this District be instructed to vote for legislation to create a single payer system of universal health care that provides all Massachusetts residents with comprehensive health care coverage including the freedom to choose doctors and other health care professionals, facilities, and services, and eliminates the role of insurance companies in health care by creating an insurance trust fund that is publicly administered?”

Mass-Care ran the ballot question in the 20 districts below, winning all of them. Numbers are changing slightly as more towns are reporting; for the most up-to-date results, please contact Mass-Care.

 

WESTERN MASS

Pittsfield

·Rep. Tricia Farley-Bouvier, 2nd Berkshire

 

Belchertown, Ludlow, Pelham, New Salem, Petersham, Shutesbury, Wendell

·Open Seat (Oliveira), 7th Hampden

 

Agawam, Chicopee, East Longmeadow, Monson, Springfield, West Springfield, Westfield, Wilbraham

·Rep. Michael Finn, 6th Hampden

·Open Seat (Wagner), 8th Hampden

·Rep. Angelo Puppolo, 12th Hampden

 

Greenfield, Athol, Orange, Erving, Gill, Northfield, Phillipston, Royalston, Warwick, Winchendon

·Rep. Susannah Whipps, 2nd Franklin

 

CENTRAL MASS

Acton, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Concord

·Open Seat (Gouveia), 14th Middlesex

 

Berlin, Boylston, Clinton, Lancaster, Sterling, Northborough

·Rep. Meghan Kilcoyne, 12th Worcester

 

Framingham, Marlborough

·Rep. Danielle Gregoire, 4th Middlesex

 

EASTERN MASS

Arlington, Cambridge, Medford

·Rep. Sean Garballey, 23rd Middlesex

·Rep. Marjorie Decker, 25th Middlesex

 

Boston: Dorchester, Mattapan, Jamaica Plain, Milton

·Rep. Brandy Fluker-Oakley, 12th Suffolk

·Rep. Dan Hunt, 13th Suffolk

·Open Seat (Elugardo), 15th Suffolk

 

Malden, Medford, Somerville 

·Rep. Stephen Ultrino, 33rd Middlesex

·Rep. Christine Barber, 34th Middlesex

·Rep. Paul Donato, 35th Middlesex

 

NORTH SHORE

Newburyport, Amesbury, Merrimac, Salisbury

·Open Seat, 1st Essex

 

SOUTH SHORE

Holbrook, Quincy, Weymouth

·Rep. Ron Mariano, 3rd Norfolk

Hingham, Hull, Cohasset

·Rep. Joan Meschino, 3rd Plymouth

NOTE: Because of additional ballot questions in the town of Hingham, single-payer health care was Question 7. 

 

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