By Joseph Q. Jarvis | Published: 15 June 2026
There is an organization called One Payer States (OPS) which supports the state-based single payer movement throughout the country (One Payer States) The organization „is dedicated to advancing America’s highest Ideals in the pursuit of quality, comprehensive, and guaranteed healthcare for everyone in America.“ OPS has recently announced a fifty state strategy for 2027, the intent being to generate a single payer proposal for consideration either in the legislature or at the ballot box in each and every state.
Health reform has never been more needed. ACA subsidies have not been renewed, leading to 1/3 of those benefitting from Obamacare health insurance dropping their coverage. Medicaid is being slashed, meaning millions more will have no financing for needed health care. Health care costs are rising faster than inflation in the rest of the economy, and are the #1 issue on the minds of American voters. Among wealthy nations, only American patients die because they can not afford routine care, and only American families are bankrupted by trying to care for their loved ones during illness and injury.
Polling conducted where I live indicates that Utahns are ready to support massive changes in the way we do health care business. For our part of the OPS 2027 goal, we have already drafted the needed legislation and in fact had it introduced (as SB 300-the Utah Cares Act) in the most recent legislative session (2026). Anyone can read the drafted bill by visiting the Utah Cares Website—View source at utahcares.health. We plan to apply to place the bill as a voter initiative on the 2028 ballot.
But here is where the OPS 50 State strategy and our own efforts in Utah often get stuck. In fact, the entire single payer movement is stuck—and it’s ironically mostly stuck on money, or better said, the lack thereof. It’s ironic because single payer health reform will save the nation trillions of dollars over the first decade of implementation but those of us working to bring it about are finding it difficult to raise the thousands of dollars needed to fund our campaigns. Where are the deep pockets of progressivism when it comes to single payer health reform? Plenty of donations are found for the green new deal or LGBTQ issues, for instance, but the single payer movement gets outspent ten to one by the medical industrial complex.
In Utah we need $50,000 of seed money to get started on our 2028 ballot initiative. We will spend that money on a statewide recruitment of 1000 co-sponsors for our proposal. Help us kickstart the campaign to finally put patients before profits in our health care system. Click here: Utah Cares PI. And make a generous donation. Give us the seed money to begin this most important campaign.
Many thanks.
Dr. Joseph Q. Jarvis is a public health physician, chair of the Utah Cares Political Issue Committee and author of several books, including The Purple World: Healing the Harm in American Health Care and What the Single Eye Sees: Faith, Hope, Charity, and the Pursuit of Discipleship.