Watch Ady Barkan's powerful testimony during the House's Medicare for All hearing

Assisted by his computer's text-to-voice program, health care activist Ady Barkan told the House Rules Committee on Tuesday what his life has been like in the three years since he was diagnosed with ALS, and how much easier it would have been if Medicare for All existed.

This was Congress' first-ever hearing on Medicare for All; legislation has been introduced by Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), with the House Budget Committee taking up the bill in May, HuffPost reports. Barkan told lawmakers that that even though he has insurance, his family has to pay $9,000 a month for home care. The alternative is "for me to go on Medicare and move into a nursing home, away from my wife and son," he said. They are "cobbling together the money" from family, friends, and supporters across the country, but "this is an absurd way to run a health care system. GoFundMe is a terrible substitute for smart congressional action."


Through Medicare for All, everyone would have access to quality health care, covering all necessary treatments, Barkan said. "We will no longer need to choose between paying the rent and filling a prescription," Medicare for All would also eliminate "immoral price gouging" by pharmaceutical companies, he added. "Some people argue that, although Medicare for All is a great idea, we need to move slowly to get there," he said. "But I needed Medicare for All yesterday. Millions of people need it today. The time to pass this law is now."