Medicare for More

I like the idea of Medicare for, well, most, but I would argue for preserving private insurance for those who can afford it. But Obamacare missed an opportunity that could save us a lot of money, the opportunity to replace at least a couple of other costly programs.

The Veterans Administration (VA) provides medical care to military veterans. Why not let Medicare provide for them instead?

Workers Compensation provides medical care for those injured at work. If Medicare covered these folks, we would not have to spend so much on fighting over whether or not the illness was work-related. I believe we waste millions of dollars on forensic evaluations by independent examiners who opine as to the cause of the illness. Lawyers and judges get involved, too. Medicare would provide "no fault" coverage, although we might still have to fight over whether to pay the injured worker time-loss compensation if they cannot work due to their injuries. These programs also make unnecessary demands on medical providers who must answer questions and sometimes opine on causality, while also billing a separate payer with another set of rules to know. State, rather than Federal, governments administer these programs, but I would hope all would agree to turn this responsibility over to a Medicare program. 

Could we realized advantages by replacing the Indian Health Service as well?

Any further discussion of Medicare for all should consider these possibilities.