03/18/2026
From PNHP: Today is a landmark day for our movement. Just a few hours ago, the Chicago City Council voted unanimously to pass a resolution in support of single-payer Medicare for All!
This makes Chicago the biggest city in the country to endorse Medicare for All, and sends a clear message to federal legislators that their constituents expect them to support single-payer bills in the U.S. House and Senate.
How did Medicare for All advocates secure this victory? One word: organizing!
The Illinois Single Payer Coalition initiated the campaign for a Chicago resolution and their members and leaders sustained the effort for over a year.
PNHP’s Illinois chapter mobilized physicians and medical students to speak out about the need for Medicare for All—including my own City Council testimony last week.
Public Citizen supported the Chicago team with insights gleaned from over 100 successful local resolutions campaigns across the country.
Dozens of allied organizations like People’s Lobby and National Nurses United signed on to the resolution.
Alderwoman Ruth Cruz heard our coalition’s message loud and clear, and became a champion for Medicare for All in the Chicago City Council.
Now that the resolution has passed, it’s up to us to keep the momentum going!
Urge your federal legislators to support Medicare for All
Today’s resolution concludes with a clear call to action:
BE IT RESOLVED that we, the members of the Chicago City Council, enthusiastically support the Medicare for All Act of 2025 (H.R. 3069 and S. 1506) and call on our federal legislators to work toward its swift enactment to ensure equal access to high-quality health care for all who reside in the United States.
Next year, Chicago will have at least FIVE new legislators representing us in Congress: One U.S. senator and four U.S. representatives in the 2nd, 4th, 7th, and 9th districts—all of them replacing retiring members of the House and Senate.
If you live in one of these districts—or anywhere in the US—now is the time to urge your candidates to pledge that they will sign on to single-payer legislation in 2027. Call your legislators, write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper, organize with your colleagues and neighbors, and build the power we will need to win Medicare for All.
Municipal resolutions are a powerful way to build momentum for single-payer reform, and Chicago’s resolution represents the apex of this national campaign ... so far. https://www.medicare4allresolutions.org/
As I said in my testimony before the city’s Health and Human Relations committee last week, the tide is going to turn in this country. We need to build our power and be prepared to win Medicare for All when the opportunity presents itself.
In solidarity,
Claudia M. Fegan, M.D.
National Coordinator
The Fight for Medicare for All Begins in Your Community!
