"as would an employer's HR department. "Employers spend a lot of money processing information for the insurance industry, identifying insurance plans, and negotiating," says Friedman.  "And that would just disappear."  Instead, the government (or the individual states, depending on how the logistics shake out) would negotiate prices, set plans, and deal with the paperwork. 

"Everything from dental care to long-term care is covered for everyone under single payer, equalizing treatment between the affluent and less affluent.  If this sounds familiar, it's because there is already a fairly successful public medical financing system in the U.S.: Medicare, which all seniors over 65 can qualify for.  Proponents of single payer point to Medicare, which is fairly popular, as an indication that a generalized universal program could work here. 

"Federal funding currently earmarked for healthcare, including spending for Medicare, Medicaid, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program, --Con't.