To the dismay of her constituents, Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s (D-Calif.) refuses to get behind a Medicare-for-All healthcare system. And it just so happens that she has accepted massive contributions from healthcare lobbyists also opposed to such a program, a deep dive into her campaign financing has revealed.
Bucking growing momentum in support of a national single-payer system, as well as a trailblazing effort within her home state, Feinstein told San Francisco voters during a town hall earlier this month: “If single-payer healthcare is going to mean the complete takeover by the government of all healthcare, I am not there.”
As Common Dreams reported, her remarks were met with boos and chants of “single-payer now!”
At a second town hall a few days later, when asked if she would sponsor Sen. Bernie Sanders’ (I-Vt.) pending Medicare-for-All bill, she dismissed the effort as “a takeover of all medicine in the United States.”
On Tuesday, the money in politics watchdog MapLight revealed that less than a week after those raucous meetings, Feinstein attended “a fundraising event at the Washington, D.C., office of Avenue Solutions, a lobbying firm that represents major health insurers, pharmaceutical companies and the primary trade association for doctors.”
According to reporter Andrew Perez, “Feinstein supporters at the event were expected to kick in $1,000 to $5,000 for her re-election bid.” Meaning that Feinstein, who is running for her fifth full Senate term, pocketed thousands from industry groups historically and vocally opposed to a government-run, universal healthcare system—at the same time that a popular push for such a program has never been stronger.
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