Former Vice President Joe Biden, who launched his 2020 presidential bid last week, endorsed a public option that would allow all Americans the choice of buying into Medicare, a federal health insurance program for those age 65 and older that began in 1966. During his first major address as a 2020 presidential candidate in Pittsburgh on Monday, Biden threw his support behind letting Americans decide whether they wanted to opt in to the program. "Whether you're covered through your employer or on your own or not, you all should have a choice to be able to buy into a public option plan for Medicare… Your choice," Biden said. "If the insurance company isn't doing the right thing by you, you should have another choice." Biden's comments came after Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, another Democratic 2020 presidential candidate, reintroduced his Medicare for Alll plan earlier this month. Unlike Biden's, Sanders' proposed plan would institute a single-payer health care system throughout the U.S. The Vermont senator's goal is to see all Americans covered by a government-run insurance plan. Other 2020 Democratic presidential candidates—including Senators Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Kamala Harris of California, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Cory Booker of New Jersey—co-sponsored the proposed initiative. After Sanders released a five-page paper detailing the types of coverage available under the progressive plan, critics noted that the document didn't propose how taxes would change for the plan to be financially viable. Biden's proposal is more in line with his more moderate positions. South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg and former Representative Beto O'Rourke of Texas have put forth similar health care plans, with both 2020 candidates supporting Medicare for those who choose it. One of Biden's policy advisers told The Washington Post that while the former vice president backed lower health care costs, he would not likely support Medicare for All. "We are all trying to get to a place where we achieve universal health care. I think he sees it like that," the adviser said. "But if they want to go after him and [former President Barack] Obama about their approach to health care, bring it on." When Obamacare, officailly known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA), was passed in 2010, Biden was Obama's vice president. "Affordable health care was a huge step forward, the ACA in our country," Biden said on Monday. "Health care is a right, not a privilege." Biden's representatives did not immediately respond to Newsweek's request for further comment. Sanders also strongly backed Obama's health care legislation and campaigned against Republicans in 2017 when they attempted to repeal it. In the latest Monmouth University Poll, released last week, Biden and Sanders took the top two spots among a field of 24 announced and potential Democratic candidates, with 26 percent and 20 percent of votes from Democrats and Democratic-leaning respondents, respectively. Buttigieg and Harris tied in third and fourth place, with each garnering 8 percent of votes.<doc-sep>Former Vice President Joe Biden Joe BidenAmerican held in Russia contracts COVID-19 after denied vaccine Biden defends waiving sanctions against Nord Stream Senators struggle to save Jan. 6 commission MORE’s entry into the 2020 race is putting a renewed focus on the sharp divide between Democratic candidates who want to strengthen ObamaCare and those who prefer to make the leap to “Medicare for All.” For Biden, questions will center on whether he sticks exclusively with ObamaCare and his promise to improve on it or if he gives in to pressure from the left and gravitates toward Medicare for All, the progressive proposal backed by many of his opponents. ADVERTISEMENT Biden hasn’t publicly spoken about Medicare for All or related proposals. But he stumped for House Democrats during the 2018 midterms and touted the benefits of the 2010 Affordable Care Act (ACA), warning of efforts by Trump and Republicans to repeal it. On his campaign website, Biden says his vision on health care is to make sure the “peace of mind of health insurance is a right, not a privilege,” and that he will “defend and build upon” the ACA. His campaign did not respond to a request for more details. But as someone who helped push the ACA through Congress, Biden is considered unlikely to back the single-payer system put forth by fellow candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders Bernie SandersSenate competitiveness bill includes B authorization for Bezos space company Sanders wants government to get 'piece' of US semiconductor companies in exchange for aid Poll: 51 percent oppose Sanders-led resolution to block weapons sales to Israel MORE (I-Vt.) that eliminates private insurance and is shunned by most of the Democratic establishment in Washington. “There is a zero percent chance Joe Biden will be a genuine champion of Medicare for All,” said Adam Green, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, a group that backs Sen. Elizabeth Warren Elizabeth WarrenOn The Money: Biden administration launches trade dispute against Canadian dairy industry | Warren urges Biden to replace Fed's Quarles Warren urges Biden to replace Fed's Quarles in testy exchange Warren offers bill to increase IRS budget to .5 billion MORE (D-Mass. ), a co-sponsor of Sanders’s bill. ADVERTISEMENT Progressives also dinged Biden on his campaign launch day for plans to hold a fundraiser hosted by, among others, the CEO of Independence Blue Cross, Philadelphia’s largest health insurance company. And his comments about the right to “peace of mind of health insurance” rubbed some progressives the wrong way, saying it sounds like Biden does not intend to stand up to insurance companies. “I think he’ll face pressure to stand up to the health insurance industry that has bankrupted people and done very little to control the ever rising costs of health care,” said Neil Sroka, communications director for Democracy for America, a progressive PAC founded by Howard Dean. As the second in command to former President Obama, Biden helped pass the ACA, the largest health care reform undertaken in decades, extending coverage to 20 million people. But, almost 10 years later, 27 million people in the country still lack health insurance, and many who are covered say they can’t afford their premiums, deductibles or prescription drugs. And in recent years, a split has emerged in the Democratic Party over how best to move forward, with Sanders and others on the left pushing Medicare for All, which would move all Americans into one plan managed by the government. Biden will have to reckon with growing support in his party for Medicare for All, which has been transformed from a fringe proposal to legislation that has more than a hundred co-sponsors in Congress. Sens. Cory Booker Cory BookerBiden, Bass press for police reform after meeting Floyd family Bipartisan group of lawmakers reintroduces bill to give inmates Medicaid access Bass: 'Essential' for police reform bill to address qualified immunity MORE (N.J.), Kirsten Gillibrand Kirsten GillibrandDemocratic feud erupts over scope of military sexual assault bill Overnight Defense: Austin, Bidens thank National Guard as Capitol mission ends | CBO estimates nuclear arsenal to cost 4B over 10 years | Senate Armed Services chairman backs change in prosecuting military sexual assault Senate Armed Services chair throws support behind changing roles of military commanders in sexual assault prosecutions MORE (N.Y.) and Kamala Harris Kamala HarrisBiden, Bass press for police reform after meeting Floyd family Biden, Harris condemn surge in antisemitic incidents Mexican president: FAA safety downgrade meant to benefit US carriers MORE (Calif.) are among the Democratic candidates who back the bill. Biden’s supporters argue he’s a pragmatist who will be buoyed by the record-high support for the ACA. They also note that Democrats won back the House last year because they ran on defending ObamaCare. “I think he’s going to make the case of being the chief defender of the ACA, knowing that it’s a winning argument for Democratic primary voters, and less so moving to a single-payer position or a Medicare for All position,” said Kevin Walling, a Democratic strategist who supports Biden. Walling said Biden could contrast his defense of the law with Trump, who has tried to dismantle the ACA through executive action and is seeking to have the law overturned in the courts. “He can run on protecting pre-existing conditions and lowering the cost of health care,” Walling said. Biden wouldn’t be the only Democratic candidate in the 2020 field who isn’t embracing Medicare for All. South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg Pete ButtigiegThe Hill's Morning Report - Presented by Uber - One year later — has George Floyd's killing changed the world? Bipartisan infrastructure talks on life support Buttigieg acknowledges 'daylight' between White House, GOP on infrastructure MORE (D) has said he believes the country should move “in the direction” of a Medicare for All system, but that private health insurance companies shouldn’t be eliminated. Sen. Amy Klobuchar Amy KlobucharDemocrats to introduce bill to prevent default recurring political donations Are the Supreme Court and Biden ready to rumble over Roe? Bottom line MORE (D-Minn.), meanwhile, has called for improving ObamaCare while creating a public option, run by the government, to compete with private insurance. Biden and Obama both pushed to include a public option in ObamaCare, but it was cut to garner the necessary support from moderate Democrats. A public option is now a favorite proposal among moderate Democrats. “The public option is a guarantee that there will be an affordable choice,” Biden said in an ABC interview in 2009. While running for president in 2007, Biden unveiled a plan that would have allowed some Americans between the ages of 55 and 64 to buy into the Medicare program. Democratic leaders in Congress have called for improving the ACA instead of focusing on Medicare for All, proposing legislation to expand access to tax credits that help people get insurance, while making the credits more generous. Doug Thornell, a Democratic political consultant who says he’s neutral in the primary, said Biden will benefit from being the only candidate who has actually managed to pass health care reform. “I think he can credibly say that under Obama and him, they were able to bring all parts of the Democratic Party together to pass a very ambitious health care bill, something that hadn’t been done in decades,” Thornell said. “I think he’ll point both to what he’s done but also look ahead and having an aspiration to get the country to where we all want it to be — a place where everyone can afford health care and not go bankrupt when they get sick.”<doc-sep>Biden’s plan would create a new government option for patients in the marketplace exchanges that would aim to lower prices for individual Americans by competing directly with private plans, according to a policy adviser for Biden, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share details of the proposal. Employers would also be able to buy into the public plan. Additional details about the plan will be released later in the campaign.<doc-sep>
Former Vice President Joe Biden Joe BidenAmerican held in Russia contracts COVID-19 after denied vaccine Biden defends waiving sanctions against Nord Stream Senators struggle to save Jan. 6 commission MORE on Monday called for giving everyone the option to buy into Medicare but stopped short of supporting the full "Medicare for All" proposal backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders Bernie SandersSenate competitiveness bill includes B authorization for Bezos space company Sanders wants government to get 'piece' of US semiconductor companies in exchange for aid Poll: 51 percent oppose Sanders-led resolution to block weapons sales to Israel MORE (I-Vt.). Biden framed his approach as giving people a choice between government-run insurance and private plans. In contrast, the proposal from Sanders, a rival presidential candidate, would require everyone to be on a government plan. ADVERTISEMENT "Whether you're covered through your employer or on your own or not, you all should have a choice to be able to buy into a public option plan for Medicare," Biden said in a speech in Pittsburgh, the first major address of his presidential campaign, which he announced last week. "Your choice," Biden added. "And if the insurance company isn't doing the right thing by you, you should have another choice." That Biden is stopping short of Sanders’s plan is not surprising given that the former vice president is expected to run in a more moderate lane than Sanders’s progressive approach. The move, though, could still open Biden up to disappointment from some Medicare for All supporters in the primary. Biden’s position is similar to that of fellow candidates such as former Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-Texas) and South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg Pete ButtigiegThe Hill's Morning Report - Presented by Uber - One year later — has George Floyd's killing changed the world? Bipartisan infrastructure talks on life support Buttigieg acknowledges 'daylight' between White House, GOP on infrastructure MORE (D), who has called for "Medicare for all who want it." In contrast, Sanders and Sen. Kamala Harris Kamala HarrisBiden, Bass press for police reform after meeting Floyd family Biden, Harris condemn surge in antisemitic incidents Mexican president: FAA safety downgrade meant to benefit US carriers MORE (D-Calif.) have been leaning the hardest into the idea of abolishing the current role of private insurers. Biden was vice president when ObamaCare passed, and he praised that law. "Affordable health care was a huge step forward, the ACA in our country," Biden said. "We have to stop this administration's effort to gut it first, and then we have to move on and finish the job and make health care a right," he added. "Health care is a right, not a privilege."