WASHINGTON — Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., said Monday he intends to press for a far-reaching health-care bill after he becomes chairman of the Senate Finance Committee next year, without committing to a Medicare for All plan¹.

Speaking to reporters at the Capitol, Wyden said he supports replacing private health insurance with a Medicare-like program for all Americans but wanted to confer with other senators first¹. He described the current insurance system as broken and in need of a major overhaul, without setting a timeline or a specific legislative path¹.

He said he was “certainly looking at” a proposal from Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., that would add vision, hearing and dental coverage to Medicare¹. Asked by States Newsroom whether he could pass his goals while the Senate still requires 60 votes to advance most bills, Wyden did not give a direct answer¹.

Wyden also named taxes, trade and oversight as priorities for the committee¹. He said he wants a permanent child tax credit, a tax on billionaires, and a bipartisan coalition large enough to override a veto of legislation reversing tariffs on Canada¹.

On oversight, he said the panel would examine Wall Street banks that had Jeffrey Epstein as a client and look closely at drug and insurance companies¹. Committee lawyers, he said, are reviewing how to undo an arrangement that would exempt President Donald Trump from future IRS audits¹.

The account is original reporting by States Newsroom’s DC bureau, republished across that network’s state sites¹. Independent outlets were not among the assigned sources, and it is not yet clear what bills the committee will mark up or whether they can clear the Senate¹.