Unveiling a health care plan seems to be a requirement in the 2020 Democratic presidential race. It could serve as an express train to the fringe of the party and a springboard up the polls. Unfortunately for Joe Biden, the former didn’t happen. Actually, his health care plan cemented his place as the moderate in a herd of progressives.
In a clear distinction from his competition most noteworthy, Sens. Bernie Sanders and Kamala Harris, who both have proposed their version of Medicare for all, Biden rested on what he knows best and also rolled out a plan that would expand Obamacare. It would also allow people to buy into a program that, according to his campaign, would be comparable to Medicare.
“We should not be starting from scratch. We should be building from what we have. There’s no time to wait,” Biden told an audience in Dover, New Hampshire, last Friday.
This public option would cover abortions and contraception. Currently, abortion is not one of the 10 essential health benefits that must be covered by insurance companies.
Biden would allow people who want Obamacare but live in states that are not enrolled in the historic program to sign up for free. Under Biden, no one will pay more than 8.5 percent of their income.
Biden would also lift a cap that prohibits people who have made more than $100,000 to qualify to help pay their premiums. Apparently, this is what Obama originally wanted to do but the Democratic Congress shot the idea of a public option down.
There would be three tiers that one could buy into. The top tier will have higher premiums but lower deductibles. This would eliminate one of the major criticisms of Obamacare, that its deductibles are too high. This would cost the American people $75 billion per year over ten years.
“We’re starting with the Affordable Care Act as the base and going to insist on the elements that we sought last time — and we’ll get them this time,” a senior Biden campaign official said.
