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Today, as we launch our campaign here in Iowa, we say to the private health insurance companies, whether you like it or not, the United States will join every other major country on earth and guarantee healthcare to all people as a right. All Americans are entitled to go to the doctor when they're sick and not go bankrupt after staying in the hospital. We will no longer accept the absurdity of paying almost twice as much per capita on health care, while we have a lower life expectancy and worse health care outcomes than many other countries.

The goal of health care must be to provide quality care to all in a cost effective way, not tens of billions in profits for the insurance companies and outrageous compensation packages for CEOs. In 2017, the top 65 healthcare CEO's made $1.7 billion in compensation including: $83.2 million to David Wichmann, the CEO of UnitedHealth Group and 58.7 million to Mark Bertolini, the CEO of Aetna. We need a health care system that invests in disease prevention, doctors, nurses, dentists and rural clinics. We don't a system which makes insurance companies and their CEOs super rich. Yes. We will pass a Medicare for all single-payer program. Health care is a right. And, by the way, our legislation improves health care for seniors by providing coverage for dental care, hearing aids and eye glasses.

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In many communities, there really is only one buyer, which means food producers are at their mercy. They must use that corporation's feed and livestock, they must accept that corporation's costs, and they must accept that corporation's lower and lower payment rates. In many cases, the farmer doesn't even own the livestock or supplies -- they are effectively contract employees who are forced to lease everything, and then get paid an inadequate wage for their very hard work.

With the federal government not enforcing antitrust laws, we have seen mergers like the Bayer-Monsanto approved, giving the two largest conglomerates 78 percent of the corn seed market.

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https://www.businessinsider.com/bernie-sanders-iowa-2020-rally-speech-transcript-2019-3