Issue Position: Healthcare

Issue Position

I BELIEVE that healthcare is a right, not a privilege. The battle to pass the Affordable Care Act was hard-fought. I'm committed to improving and strengthening the ACA first and foremost, and to stopping Republicans in Washington from dismantling it.

Basic health care should be affordable for everyone. Like all insurance, health care works best when the membership is large and diverse. I will work to make basic health care an affordable reality for as many people as possible. I will also work to preserve freedom of choice regarding which type and how much is right for each individual.

Health care should be simple to understand and manage. Patients should be provided with information about proposed treatments that includes alternative treatments along with what their insurance covers and their out-of-pocket costs for each treatment. Medical records should be standardized, easily accessible to patients, and easily transferable between providers. This will simplify patient's management of their care, reduce costs for providers, and improve quality of care.

End the excessive price increases on prescription drugs. Today, Americans pay more than double than what other countries pay for prescription drugs. In 2015, 16.7 percent of healthcare spending in the U.S. went to prescription drugs. We need to end the outrageous prescription drug price increases and require drug manufacturers to make public information justifying any significant price increase. Additionally, we need to give the government the power to negotiate lower drug prices for the 41 million Americans enrolled in Medicare Part D.

Rates can be controlled by improving efficiency. Today, it seems daunting to deliver quality health care to everyone without raising taxes or bankrupting our country, but we can do it. There are many ways we can be more efficient in developing new treatments, delivering services, and managing the system. I will work to find and implement changes like standardized health records, and improved FDA approval processes.

Bipartisan cooperation is needed to improve our healthcare system. The ACA was a great step forward, but health care will always need improvement. I will share my ideas and collect the best ideas from both sides of the aisle to promote a system that is socially progressive, fiscally responsible, and preserves individual rights.

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