Single payer will take years to implement in California, Gavin Newsom says

The San Francisco Chronicle reports:

Among California’s gubernatorial candidates, none has been a more exuberant supporter of transitioning to a single-payer, Medicare-for-all health care system than Democratic Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom. So exuberant that the politically powerful California Nurses Association put his picture on its traveling campaign bus under the words, “Nurses Trust Newsom.”


But during an interview with The Chronicle’s editorial board Wednesday, the former San Francisco mayor tamped down expectations about how long it will take to transition from an employer-based coverage system, which is how most Californians get their health care.

“Years,” Newsom said. “First of all, you will deal with litigation. You’ll deal with setbacks. You’ll have constitutional questions that have to be addressed by the voters. You’ll have propositions on the ballot — maybe multiple.

California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom sits down with John Diaz and Lois Kazakoff of The Chronicle's editorial team to talk about running for governor and more.

“It is not an act that would occur by the signature of the next governor,” said. “There’s a lot of mythology about that.”

Comrade Newsom talks socialism...