Source: New York Post
by Sally C Pipes
“California progressives’ single-payer health care fever dream is back. This time, the cost could hit half a trillion dollars a year. Single-payer means the government pays, for everything. Several candidates for governor are promising just such a government takeover of the state’s health insurance system. Billionaire Tom Steyer says, ‘Bernie Sanders was right. We need single-payer health care’. His campaign ads place a single-payer system at the center of his agenda. Betty Yee, Xavier Becerra, and Tony Thurmond are on board, too. Meanwhile, California State Assemblyman Ash Kalra, D-San Jose, has reintroduced legislation to create ‘CalCare’ (a bid to bulldoze private health insurance and replace it with a state-run health insurance monopoly). These are bold plans. They’re also complete fantasy. The California Legislative Analyst’s Office previously pegged the annual cost of CalCare at up to $552 billion — more than the entire state budget.” (03/04/26)
https://nypost.com/2026/03/04/opinion/single-payer-health-care-would-bankrupt-california/