As Senate and House committees work on different versions of health care legislation, Senator Bernie Sanders said that “at the very least, you‘ve got to give the American people an option of choosing a public plan in competition with the private insurance companies.” A public plan, like Medicare for all Americans, would not have the administrative costs, the huge CEO compensation costs, and the general bureaucracy that that drive up consumer costs to support the bloated private insurance industry. The senator made the case for reform during an appearance on The Rachel Maddow Show.

“Millions and millions of people have got to stand up and make it very clear to the president and to Congress that the status quo is simply not acceptable, that we have a dysfunctional health care system, that we‘re the only industrialized nation in the world that does not guarantee health care to every man, woman and child.  And yet, we end up spending almost twice as much as any other country,” Sanders said.

“We need real health care reform, comprehensive health care reform, and we can do it if we can rally millions of people to help us stand up to the insurance companies and the drug companies,” the senator added.

To watch Sanders on The Rachel Maddow Show, click here.

To read a transcript of the show, click here.