Single-Payer Health Care in the United States: Feasible Solution or Grand Illusion?

The adoption of a single-payer health care system, a recurring dream of progressive American reformers, now enjoys sustained attention in the run-up to the 2020 national elections. Some compelling arguments support the case for single payer, and its political prospects may indeed be on the rise, but myriad obstacles beset it, and a full-throated Democratic endorsement of it carries disquieting risks.