PHOENIX — An archived video clip shows that the Democratic candidate in a close Arizona House race supported government-run universal health care during a 2019 town hall for then-presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.
“We have a system that's based on the free market, and there are a lot of things wrong with it,” Amish Shah said at an event. events The Phoenix Democratic Socialists of America and the Progressive Democrats of America hosted it in May 2019.
“No other industrialized country or first world country provides healthcare through the free market because it's not really a system,” Shah said. “To take the problem and fix it, we need universal, single-payer Medicare for everyone across the country.”
This would end all private health insurance in America.
When The Post contacted Shah’s campaign to ask if he still maintained his stance, the candidate deferred.
“As a physician who has been practicing medicine for more than 20 years, I know that every healthcare system has pros and cons. These are real people's lives, and the patients and voters I've talked to don't want this topic used as an opportunity for cynical political attacks,” Shah told the Post.
“Ultimately, the important thing is that people have access to affordable healthcare,” Shah concludes.
Competing in the state's Democratic primary in July, Shah said Arizona Republic While he still supports universal health care, other payer options should be considered besides the “single payer” he touted in 2019.
Shah won the July 30 1st Congressional District primary with 23.5% of the vote, defeating five other Democrats.
Shah, a former Arizona state representative, is running for this highly competitive seat against incumbent Republican Rep. David Schweikert. The Cook Political Report ranks this race as a toss-up, with the GOP having a slight edge — R+2 — in its Partisan Voting Index.
Republicans say the clip shows a close relationship between Shah and Sanders.
National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Ben Peterson said, “Amish Shah has been caught red-handed supporting Bernie Sanders for president at a Phoenix Socialists event. The people of Arizona will reject this Bernie Bro who is bent on imposing his radical socialist agenda on them.”
