Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Clinton Gains Backing Of Large Health Workers Union, Draws Sharper Contrasts With Sanders On Health Policies
Hillary Rodham Clinton won the endorsement of the Service Employees International Union on Tuesday, giving her the support of a labor powerhouse that backed President Barack Obama in 2008. The nation's largest health care union represents about 2 million nurses, health care workers and other caregivers and is among the most ethnically diverse unions in the country. The decision is a blow to Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, whose supporters had pushed against an endorsement. (Thomas, 11/17)
Hillary Clinton drew a sharp contrast with Bernie Sanders on health care and taxes here on Tuesday, telling a fired-up audience at a local community college that as president, she would not raise taxes on the middle class. (Merica, 11/17)
Intensifying their rivalry, Hillary Rodham Clinton on Tuesday accused Bernie Sanders of charting a tax increase on middle-class families and undercutting President Barack Obama's signature health care law. Sanders' campaign shot back that her approach to health care was all about her financial donors. Clinton said at a Dallas rally that Democrats shouldn't follow a plan by "one of my opponents" that would replace the current health care system with a Medicare for all system, turning it over to the states. (Thomas, 11/17)
Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton took some pointed jabs at Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Tuesday in an otherwise routine campaign visit to Dallas. 鈥淲hen your governor turned away federal dollars that could have expanded Medicaid, he put ideology ahead of the well-being of the people and the families in this state,鈥 Clinton said, noting Texas鈥檚 nation-leading rate of uninsured residents. (Shine, 11/17)
And drug pricing issues continue to be a hot topic among candidates -
Here鈥檚 a dirty little secret as prescription drug costs emerge as a major political issue: Nobody really knows what will work. Presidential candidates are rolling out proposals and lawmakers are holding hearings to show they鈥檙e on it. But many of the top proposals from Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, and the Republican candidates have been floated for a long time 鈥 and experts say none is guaranteed to bring down drug prices in a way that would significantly alleviate the burden on consumers. (Scott, 11/18)