Less Than 24 Hours After Bernie Flops, Americans' Confidence in Future of Health Care Explodes
You know, perhaps it was not coronavirus that was sinking the stock market. Perhaps it was the surge of Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont.
Following former Vice President Joe Biden’s killer performance on Super Tuesday, health care stocks and the market itself came roaring back, Fox Business reported.
Wednesday saw the Dow Jones industrial average climb more than 1,173 points while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose four percent and the Nasdaq composite almost reached four percent.
MarketWatch linked those changing numbers in part to fears over Sanders’ “Medicare for All” proposal.
CFRA analyst Sel Hardy said that Sanders’ signature plan would lead “to the termination of existing health insurance plans,” the outlet reported.
“In terms of our overall outlook for our stocks, unless there is a major shift in market conditions, Centene Corp., UnitedHealth, Humana Inc., and Cigna Corp. are set for double-digit top-line growth in the next three years, in our view, as they continue to have strong fundamentals,” Hardy wrote in a note to clients.
Keith Speights of The Motley Fool wrote that the rise in health care and health insurance stocks is directly linked to Sanders’ faltering on Tuesday.
“Sen. Sanders advocates a Medicare for All program that would largely eliminate the need for health insurance. His strength in the ongoing presidential campaign caused investors to worry about what might happen with big companies including Anthem, Humana, Cigna, UnitedHealth Group, and CVS Health (which owns Aetna),” Speights wrote.
“Now, however, former Vice President Biden appears to be the frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination. Several candidates have dropped out of the race and endorsed Biden, with former New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg the most recent to do so.”
Speights warned that Sanders could still win the nomination, and that if he does, “healthcare stocks, in general, and health insurance stocks, in particular, will likely be highly volatile.”
Democrats always present an existential threat to the stock market, but Sanders and his free-ride plans present an even more prominent danger than usual.
Coronavirus scares likely had something to do with the dip in the market, but it is tough not to see the correlation between Sanders taking a pounding and the market bouncing back.
It goes to show what many of us have said all along. Electing a Democrat, particularly a socialist, as president would annihilate the economy.
Not that Biden would be much better. He has moved to the left on many issues, including a much more relaxed stance on illegal immigration.
There is also the issue of Biden’s advanced years. If he were to pick a progressive vice president who would be a heartbeat away from the presidency, it could be another downer for the market.
Biden does not advocate a “Medicare for All” system right now, but rest assured that is where the Democratic Party is heading.
One Super Tuesday victory by the lesser of two evils is not going to stop that train.
That is why it is important to elect not only President Donald Trump again in November, but also a Republican House and Senate to finally fix health care.
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