Analysis: This Bernie Sanders-backed idea is connecting Democrats winning midterm primaries | CNN Politics

Replacing private health insurance with a universal coverage system funded and run solely by the federal government has long been a priority for the Democratic Party’s left wing. But the push for a single-payer plan, also known as Medicare for All, appeared to be on life support among Democrats after its leading advocates, Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, struggled to defend the idea during the party’s 2020 presidential primaries. Under President Joe Biden, a single-payer skeptic, Democrats focused instead on substantially expanding health coverage through the Affordable Care Act. Now, though, a new generation of Democratic House, Senate and even gubernatorial candidates are resuscitating the single-payer idea. “I do think that there is a resurgence in interest in single payer,” says Joseph Geevarghese, executive director of Our Revolution, the organizing group founded by Sanders. “We’re in a moment where people are starting to feel the affordability crisis when it comes to health care in a very real way.” Like Geevarghese, most Democratic operatives believe the idea’s revival reflects growing frustration over rising health care costs at a moment when vote