2020 presidential candidates on the Affordable Care Act

2020 presidential candidates on the issues

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Presidential election
Donald Trump

Joe Biden

Howie Hawkins

Jo Jorgensen

This page includes statements from the 2020 presidential candidates on the Affordable Care Act. These statements were compiled from each candidate's official campaign website, editorials, speeches, and interviews. Click the following links for policy statements about related issues: healthcare, Medicare for All, and prescription drug costs.

The candidates featured on this page are the 2020 presidential nominees from the Democratic, Republican, Libertarian, and Green parties.

Donald Trump
Joe Biden
Howie Hawkins
Jo Jorgensen

Affordable Care Act

Republican candidates

Donald Trump

Donald Trump's campaign website says, "As part of the landmark Tax Cuts and Jobs Act President Trump repealed the individual mandate, which forced people to buy expensive insurance and taxed those who couldn’t afford it. The mandate disproportionately hurt the poor: 80% of those affected made less than $50,000." ^{[source, as of 2020-06-22]}

Mark Sanford

Mark Sanford's campaign website says, "Senator Rand Paul and I introduced the Obamacare Replacement Act in 2017. Among other things, it would legalize people buying the health insurance they needed, rather than the health insurance the government prescribed. It would allow people to deduct the cost of their insurance the way employers can with employees. It would bolster Health Savings Accounts, create competition across state lines and even incorporate some of the good ideas found in Obamacare – such as allowing children to stay on their parents plan until the age of 26 and protecting those with preexisting conditions." ^{[source, as of 2019-09-10]}

Joe Walsh

Joe Walsh's campaign website does not contain a statement outlining his position on the Affordable Care Act.

Walsh said in a debate, "There is no more important issue in this country than this. We've got the American people living longer and longer and longer. That's a good thing. But how we pay for the health care for all of these Americans living longer and longer and longer. Neither the Republican Party or the Democrat Party want to talk about that. And you've got Democrats out there again well-meaning Democrats saying Medicare for all. Just have the government do everything. And then you've got Republicans out there Anthony saying. Nothing. Because they're afraid to talk about health care. It would be the issue I'd want to lead a discussion on." ^{[source, as of 2019-09-24]}

Bill Weld

Bill Weld said in a speech, "As to health care, instead of arguing endlessly and fruitlessly about whether the Affordable Care Act should be repealed – because let’s face it, we do not have a consensus in Congress – there are various commonsense health care issues that could be addressed immediately, across party lines. Consumers should be permitted to establish personal health care savings accounts, and to choose their health care provider. They should be free to purchase pharmaceutical drugs across state lines and also in other countries. Their choice, not the government’s." ^{[source, as of 2019-02-15]}

Democratic candidates

Joe Biden

Joe Biden proposes protecting and building on the Affordable Care Act instead of switching to a Medicare for All system.

Biden's campaign website says about the Affordable Care Act: "Because of Obamacare, over 100 million people no longer have to worry that an insurance company will deny coverage or charge higher premiums just because they have a pre-existing condition – whether cancer or diabetes or heart disease or a mental health challenge. Insurance companies can no longer set annual or lifetime limits on coverage. Roughly 20 million additional Americans obtained the peace of mind that comes with health insurance. Young people who are in transition from school to a job have the option to stay covered by their parents’ plan until age 26. But, every day over the past nine years, the Affordable Care Act has been under relentless attack. As president, Biden will protect the Affordable Care Act from these continued attacks. He opposes every effort to get rid of this historic law – including efforts by Republicans, and efforts by Democrats. Instead of starting from scratch and getting rid of private insurance, he has a plan to build on the Affordable Care Act by giving Americans more choice, reducing health care costs, and making our health care system less complex to navigate." ^{[source, as of 2019-08-20]}

Michael Bloomberg

Mike Bloomberg's campaign website says, "Mike believes every American should have access to affordable medical care, and expanding Obamacare and Medicare is the best way to achieve universal coverage." ^{[source, as of 2019-12-11]}

Cory Booker

Cory Booker's official U.S. Senate website says, "Senator Booker has witnessed New Jersey families struggle with our health care system and believes that all Americans should have access to affordable, quality health care. Senator Booker supports the ACA's goal of ensuring access to quality care and is working to improve the law. Senator Booker knows that there is work left to do to drive down the cost of health care and health insurance, and is closely monitoring the Affordable Care Act's implementation to make sure it works for all New Jerseyans." ^{[source, as of 2019-08-27]}

Pete Buttigieg

Pete Buttigieg's campaign website says he wants to "strengthen the Affordable Care Act and protect it from Republican attacks. The GOP has spared no effort in trying to repeal the ACA, which would take away health care from millions of people and eliminate protections for people with pre-existing conditions. We cannot make progress toward universal health care coverage unless we shore up the foundation laid by the ACA." ^{[source, as of 2019-08-21]}

Julián Castro

When asked on a New York Times survey, Would you favor only modifications to the Affordable Care Act, including extending premium assistance to more middle-class Americans?" Castro responded, "No." In another survey response, Castro said, "The best way to improve the health care system is to provide Medicare for all, with an option to choose either a complimentary or supplementary private insurance." ^{[source, as of 2019-06-23]}

Tulsi Gabbard

Tulsi Gabbard's official government website says, "While the Affordable Care Act (ACA) took an important step forward by insuring close to 20 million Americans, many issues—such as escalating costs on individuals and small businesses, and high copayments and deductibles—remain. With 27 million Americans still uninsured today, Tulsi is committed to working to ensure that affordable healthcare is available to all Americans. So far, every GOP version of healthcare reforms intended to replace the Affordable Care Act only make the problems worse, threatening to slash billions from Medicaid, strip away essential health benefits like maternity care, substance abuse treatment, and mental health services, expand a crippling age tax on our k?puna, eliminate healthcare tax credits for over 7 million veterans, and break the bank for those with pre-existing conditions. We need real healthcare reform that brings down costs, increases access to quality care, and ensures basic health services are available to all Americans." ^{[source, as of 2019-09-26]}

Kamala D. Harris

Kamala Harris' campaign website says, "The first thing the next Democratic president must do is end these senseless attacks on Obamacare. As someone who fought tooth and nail as Attorney General and as Senator to prevent repeal, that’s exactly what I will continue to do. But we are also at a crisis point for health care in America. Big corporations are still putting profits over people’s wellbeing, and Republicans are determined to destroy what progress we have made and put those same corporations back in charge of the system. The next Democratic president needs a clear, transformative, and achievable vision of how we finally change this broken system for good." ^{[source, as of 2019-08-20]}

Amy Klobuchar

Amy Klobuchar's campaign website says, "Senator Klobuchar believes that the Affordable Care Act is a beginning, not an end, and that changes need to be made on both the state and federal level to bring down health care costs. She has fought the Trump Administration’s efforts to dismantle the Affordable Care Act and believes that we must do more to help people gain affordable coverage rather than kicking people with pre-existing conditions off of their health insurance."

Klobuchar's website says that one of her healthcare-related priorities is "Improving the Affordable Care Act to help bring down costs for consumers by expanding premium subsidies and providing cost-sharing reductions to lower out-of-pocket health care costs like copays and deductibles." It also says that in her first 100 days in office, Klobuchar would "Immediately suspend the Trump Administration’s efforts to eliminate the Affordable Care Act’s protections for people with pre-existing conditions." and "Stop Trump sabotage of the ACA by ending workarounds that allow states to raise premiums for sicker people and shift ACA premium subsidies away from lower-income enrollees." ^{[source, as of 2019-08-28]}

Beto O'Rourke

Beto O'Rourke's website says the following: "Beto’s commitment to ensuring every American has access to high quality, affordable health care builds off his record in Congress fighting to protect the Affordable Care Act and standing up for women’s reproductive rights." His website also lists the times he voted against repealing the Affordable Care Act while a U.S. representative. ^{[source, as of 2019-06-26]}

Bernie Sanders

Bernie Sanders supports moving to a single-payer healthcare system over the Affordable Care Act.

Sanders' campaign website said the United States should be "joining every other major country on Earth and guaranteeing health care to all people as a right, not a privilege, through a Medicare-for-all, single-payer program." ^{[source, as of 2019-08-23]}

Tom Steyer

Tom Steyer's campaign website says, "Tom will protect the key provisions of the Affordable Care Act. The ACA provided needed protections for people with preexisting conditions, enabled young people to remain on their parents’ plan through age 26, and established an open marketplace for individuals and small businesses to purchase insurance. Tom reaffirms these commitments to young people and the more than half of Americans with pre-existing conditions, and he will vigorously fight to prevent rolling back these protections. Tom also firmly believes in consumers’ right to shop for the plan of their choice. Tom proposes that his public option be offered side-by-side with private plans on the open exchanges, allowing any individual to purchase a plan on the exchanges if it fits their needs better than their current employer option." ^{[source, as of 2019-11-19]}

Elizabeth Warren

Elizabeth Warren tweeted, "The Affordable Care Act is the law of the land. Without it, millions of American families would lose health care coverage. I’ll fight tooth and nail to protect it." ^{[source, as of 2019-03-27]}

Andrew Yang

Andrew Yang's campaign website says, "The Affordable Care Act was a step in the right direction, providing funds to states to innovate while expanding Medicaid substantially. However, it didn’t address the fundamental issues plaguing our healthcare system: Access to medicine isn’t guaranteed to all citizens The incentives for healthcare providers don’t align with providing quality, efficient care. This must change. Through a Medicare for All system, we can ensure that all Americans receive the healthcare they deserve." ^{[source, as of 2019-08-28]}

Green candidates

Howie Hawkins

Howie Hawkins' campaign website says, "The bill that became the Affordable Care Act was drafted by insurance industry hacks in a Democratic-controlled Senate committee." ^{[source, as of 2020-01-27]}

Libertarian candidates

Jo Jorgensen

Jo Jorgensen's campaign website says she opposes the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. ^{[source, as of 2020-07-28]}

Other policy pages

Abortion

2020 presidential candidates on abortion

Criminal justice

Economy

Education

Energy and environmental issues

Foreign policy

Gun regulation

2020 presidential candidates on gun regulation

Healthcare

Immigration

Impeachment

2020 presidential candidates on impeachment

Labor

Trade

Footnotes