When Gavin Newsom campaigns on his support for a California single-payer healthcare system, he's talking about more than the virtues of universal care. He's trying to sell himself as a bold visionary.
When Antonio Villariagosa warns of the financial calamity that awaits if the state adopts single payer, he's trying to send a different message — that he's a fiscally responsible realist who won't make promises he can't keep.
The debate over single payer in California's race for governor reaches beyond how best to cure the inadequacies of healthcare in the state. It's a political marker for the top Democratic candidates trying to woo different factions of their divided party, and has emerged as the biggest policy flashpoint in the campaign.
"Single-payer healthcare has become a clear litmus test. If you support it, you're a pure progressive. If you're opposed to it, you're a pragmatist," UC San Diego political scientist Thad Kousser said. "It's more of a declaration than a policy promise because this is never going to happen, certainly during the Trump presidency."
