Sanders Would Spend $2 Trillion On Coronavirus Crisis

Bernie Sanders gave remarks early on Tuesday evening, but it wasn’t the typical speech you’d expect a candidate to give on election night.

Via webstream ahead of the polls closing, the Vermont senator addressed supporters about the growing coronavirus crisis.

“I don’t have to tell anyone viewing this program that our country and, in fact, the world are facing an unprecedented series of crises,” he said. “We’re dealing with the coronavirus, which is spreading throughout this country and throughout the world. We’re dealing with a growing economic meltdown, which will impact tens of millions of workers in this country.”

Sanders then went through a series of proposals that he says he will introduce to Democratic leadership to address both the health and economic concerns brought on by this pandemic.

Calling it an “unprecedented moment which will require an unprecedented amount of money,” Sanders estimated spending at least $2 trillion to prevent deaths and job losses and to avoid an economic catastrophe.

First addressing the health care concerns, Sanders stressed that everyone in the country who needs to go to a doctor should be able to, regardless of income.

“In the midst of this crisis, what I believe we must do is empower Medicare to cover all medical bills during this emergency,” he said.

Sanders emphasized that this proposal is not “Medicare-for-All,” a staple policy proposal in nearly every campaign speech of his on the trail, saying it’s not possible to undertake passing such an effort at this moment.

“But what this does say is that if you’re uninsured, if you are underinsured, if you have high deductibles, if you have high copayments, if you have out-of-pocket expenses, Medicare will cover those expenses so that everybody, regardless of their health care needs … will get all the health care that they need,” he said.

Sanders went on to say that another top priority should be equipping hospitals and intensive care units with the equipment needed to deal with potential surges of patients coming into hospitals.

“Now, in my view, I mean, frankly, it is incomprehensible why in the wealthiest country on Earth, we are not better prepared,” he said. “But be that as it may, in my view right now, the federal government must work aggressively with the private sector to make certain that this equipment is available to hospitals and the rest of the medical community.”

Sanders talked about mobilizing medical residents, medical school students and retired medical professionals to assist in dealing with the crisis, given the possibility that doctors and nurses themselves become ill.

Sanders argued that it’s necessary to use existing emergency authority under the Defense Production Act to scale up production in the country of critical health care supplies, such as medical masks and ventilators.

Sanders also proposed expanding community health centers to increase access to care and utilizing the National Guard, the Army Corps of Engineers and other military resources to deal with the crisis.

As for the economic crisis, Sanders said the top priority is making sure that those who are unemployed because of the virus still retain a paycheck.

“Think about the millions of workers who are being laid off in the tourism industry, in the fast-food industry, the restaurant industry, the transportation industry,” he said. “These are folks that don’t have a lot of money, as all of you know. Some 40% of the people in this country cannot afford a $400 emergency. So people are sitting out there and they’re saying, ‘My God, what am I going to do? How do I take care of my family?’”

Sanders wants the federal government to provide direct payroll costs for small and medium-sized businesses to keep workers employed until the crisis passes.

Sanders said the government should provide $2,000 cash to every household each month for the duration of the crisis “to provide them with the assistance they need to pay their bills and take care of their families.”

He also proposed that everyone who loses a job qualify for unemployment compensation at 100% of their prior salary with a cap of $75,000 a year.

Other proposals included expanding the Meals on Wheels program, school lunches and food stamps; putting an immediate moratorium on evictions, foreclosures and utility shut-offs; and waiving student loan payments.

Sanders admitted it won’t be likely that Congress approves all his proposals. “When you deal with the United States Congress, you don’t get everything that you want,” he conceded. “There will be a picking and choosing here and there.”

Sanders concluded by asking supporters to communicate with his campaign about their individual experiences during the crisis and to share any proposals they’d like to see enacted.