It’s a cliched adage by now that the definition of insanity is to do the same thing over and over and expect different results. But bad ideas are incredibly resilient—and many times it seems that the worse an idea is the more resilient it is.

This has been the case when it comes to single-payer healthcare. It’s an idea that has been implemented—to abysmal results—in countries like Great Britain and Canada but continues to be pushed by some American lawmakers on a national and state level. In 2019, Washington became the first state to implement a public healthcare option and in 2021, Colorado and Nevada passed public healthcare options of their own.

Public healthcare options like the ones passed in Washington, Colorado, and Nevada are steppingstones to universal single-payer healthcare and the dangerous (and predictable) results of higher costs, fewer providers, and rationed care.

But thankfully, the Pacific Research Institute (PRI) represents a trusted voice debunking the false promises of single-payer systems. PRI’s President and CEO Sally Pipes rightfully states that, “An honest look at ‘Medicare for All’ shows what a disaster it would be for America’s patients—higher costs, long waiting lists, less access to care, unaffordable taxes, a doctor shortage, and lower quality care.”

And PRI’s campaign to defeat the recent California proposal implementing a statewide single-payer healthcare system shows that free market advocates can fight for market-based healthcare reforms even in the bluest of states.

Pacific Research Institute launches campaign to highlight problems with CalCare

When the California Governor was elected in 2018, he came into office promising to implement a single-payer system in the Golden State. After he was sworn in, the governor established a commission to study ways to finance a single-payer system for the state. But members of the California Legislature quickly grew impatient with the governor and introduced Assembly Bill 1400 (AB 1400) which would have installed a single-payer healthcare system in California called CalCare.

The proponents of AB 1400 promised that it would provide a panacea for California’s healthcare challenges, but PRI was ready to combat those claims with the truth.

PRI’s Pipes is one of the leading voices nationwide about the dangers of single-payer healthcare. Under Pipes’ leadership, PRI educated Californians about the destructive consequences a single-payer healthcare system would have for the state. To debunk the claims of AB 1400’s proponents, PRI went on a media blitz. Pipes appeared on the “Patients Rising” podcast, the nationally syndicated “Larry Elder Show,” the “John and Ken Show” in Los Angeles, which has a large audience across Southern California, and on “Sunday Morning Newsmakers with Larry Marino” in Los Angeles. She also published op-eds on the dangers of single-payer in the Orange County Register, Newsmax (reprinted at dozens of radio station websites nationwide), National Review, Real Clear Health, Forbes, and The Center Square.

In every interview and op-ed, Pipes and PRI highlighted the problmes with single-payer and backed it up with data. “Under the single-payer system in my native Canada,” says Pipes, “where private coverage is outlawed for anything considered ‘medically necessary,’ patients face record wait times of 25.6 weeks from seeing a primary care doctor to getting treatment by a specialist, and the average family of four pays over $15,000 a year in hidden taxes for this care. AB 1400 was projected to cost up to $552 billion a year—almost double the entire state budget. That’s why the more people learn about ‘Medicare for All,’ the less they support it.”

In addition to PRI’s media appearances, Pipes also debated proponents of single-payer healthcare, and worked with legislative opponents of the bill to hone and strengthen their messaging.

Despite AB 1400 winning key committee approval, thanks to PRI’s efforts, the bill was pulled on January 31, 2022, before a vote was held. The bill’s sponsors cited lack of support for its passage.

The defeat of AB 1400 marked an important victory for Californians and the nation. California often serves as the testing ground for progressive policy ideas. Had AB 1400 passed in California, single-payer legislation would likely have spread like wildfire across the country. Now, thanks in large part to PRI’s campaign, the momentum for single-payer legislation has slowed. Many times, fighting for sound policy solutions is easier said than done. Despite being proven as a failed idea, single-payer healthcare is perpetually being offered up as the solution to all of America’s healthcare problems. But PRI’s victory against AB 1400 shows—and provides a blueprint—for free market victories in even the