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To: Capitol Press Corps & Interested Parties

From: Susan Closmore, House Republican Campaign


Date: October 1, 2018
Re: Democrats' Extreme Approach to Health Care

This election season, Minnesota Democrats have taken a more extreme approach to health
care in the state. The radical push toward single payer or Medicare-for-all has been seen at all
levels of state politics from the likes of:

DFL Party Chair Ken Martin - “We will keep working toward a universal, single-payer
health care system…”

US Senator Tina Smith - “...Sen. Tina Smith, said she supports a single-payer system but did
not specifically back Medicare for All. At a rally with Ellison and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders
last week, Smith said, ‘I am so excited to be fighting with Bernie in the United States Senate
for a $15-an-hour minimum wage, for paid family leave and for health care for all of us.’”

Even members of the Minnesota House of Representatives DFL Caucus leadership including
Rep. David Bly, DFL-Northfield, Rep. Rena Moran, DFL-St. Paul, Rep. Rob Ecklund, DFL-
International Falls, Rep. Mike Freiberg, DFL-Golden Valley, Rep. Ben Lien, DFL-
Moorhead, Rep. Ilhan Omar, DFL-Minneapolis, and Rep. Dave Pinto, DFL-St. Paul,authored
a bill to create a single payer system in Minnesota.

Meanwhile, some of the House DFL's most highly touted candidates have fallen in line and
are campaigning on a single payer platform. Single-payer supporting legislative candidates
include: John Persell (05A), Pat Medure (05B), Jeff Brand (19A), Todd Lippert (20B), Rep.
Erin Koegel (37A), Amir Malik (37B), Kelly Moller (42A), Ruth Richardson (52B), Steve
Sandell (53B), Anna Claflin (54A), Tina Folch (54B), Hunter Cantrell (56A), Alice Mann
(56B), and John Huot (57B).

What DFLers don’t want to talk about is the tremendous cost a single payer or
Medicare-for-all shift would have on Minnesotans. A look at the costs associated with a
single payer plan is startling:

• Single payer in Minnesota would require over $16.8 billion in new taxes per year on
Minnesotans
• The total cost would be over $35.8 billion per year
• Single payer would eliminate over 42,800 jobs in Minnesota
Rising costs and job loss are just the beginning. The metro-focused DFL Caucus knowingly
pushes for Medicare-for-all despite the negative impact it would have on rural care
facilities.Lower reimbursement rates through Medicare would cripple rural hospitals,
leaving millions of Minnesotans with fewer and fewer options to find needed care.

Furthermore, Democrats’ push for a single payer system would put the state’s entire health
insurance industry under the Minnesota Department of Human Services; an agency that has
already demonstrated an inability to meet Minnesotans’ needs. Whether it’s spending
hundreds of millions on ineligible individuals, or writing off tens of millions in uncollected
premiums, DHS has proven an inability to manage state health care programs, let alone
undertake an enormous expansion.

Democrats’ extreme approach stands in stark contrast to what legislative Republicans have
passed into law this biennium. Thousands of Minnesotans benefited from premium relief and
the reforms that put an end to the years of double-digit premium increases. Thankfully,
legislative Republicans are offering a better alternative. Proven reforms that lower
premiums are an easy choice when compared to lofty rhetoric that would cost
Minnesotans billions of dollars, eliminate over 40,000 jobs, and close numerous rural
hospitals.

Simply put, Republicans will continue to push for reforms that lower costs, increase
accessibility to care, and protect taxpayers throughout the state.

###

PREPARED AND PAID FOR BY THE HRCC


525 PARK STREET SUITE 245 ST. PAUL, MN 55103

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