Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Obamacare's History Back In Public Eye
In the presidential debate three weeks ago, GOP nominee Donald Trump made a breathtaking claim about his record on health care: He said that he had tried to 鈥渟ave鈥 the Affordable Care Act when he was president. During Tuesday night鈥檚 vice presidential debate, JD Vance repeated that claim and then took it one step further: that Trump had not only tried to save the health care law, but did so with help from Democrats. (Cohn, 10/2)
After Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, made the misleading claim that Donald Trump saved the Affordable Care Act from destruction, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic nominee for vice president, responded by referring to a memorable vote by the late Sen. John McCain in July 2017. While McCain was not known as a health care champion, he cast a "thumbs down" vote that blocked the repeal of portions of the Affordable Care Act that is widely considered to be a pivotal moment in U.S. health care history. (Innes, 10/1)
One of the top problems facing Americans is the high cost of health care. At the last presidential debate, former President Donald Trump said he had "concepts of a plan" for replacing the Affordable Care Act. Watch Ohio Sen. JD Vance and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz discuss their campaigns' health proposals. (10/1)
JD Vance claims former President Donald Trump's actions "salvaged" the Affordable Care Act. Tim Walz, meanwhile, claims Project 2025 would require a registry of pregnancies and will limit access to contraception and infertility treatments. (Barrett, 10/2)
On gun violence and transgender health care 鈥
Asked about American gun violence at their vice presidential debate on Tuesday, Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) backed increased security at schools while Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) emphasized that solutions need to respect Second Amendment rights. Vance first brought up school security after he was asked if parents should face charges for gun crimes committed by their children. He said it would depend on the situation if parents should be responsible, then added, 鈥淚 don鈥檛 want my kids to go to school in a school that feels unsafe.鈥澛 ... Walz argued that there are clear solutions that work, as other countries, such as Finland, do not see the school shootings the U.S. experiences. He spoke about his personal experience as a gun owner, alluded to Vice President Harris鈥檚 gun ownership and said solutions aren鈥檛 about taking guns away from law-abiding citizens. (Cochran, 10/1)
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz鈥檚 son, Gus, witnessed a shooting last year at a St. Paul recreation center in which a teenager was shot in the head 鈥 something the Democratic vice-presidential nominee said as he argued for policies to reduce gun violence at Tuesday night鈥檚 debate. (McDaniel and Wells, 10/2)
鈥淭ampon Tim鈥:聽Republicans have tried to paint Democrats as too far left on transgender rights 鈥 and Walz, in particular, has become a target. But it didn't get any mention on stage. Another related topic that didn鈥檛 come up? Trans student athletes鈥 ability to compete on sports teams aligned with their gender identity. (Mutnick and Gramer, 10/1)