PBS News Hour: on Health Care

Joe Sestak: Create "public option," allow Canadian drug imports

Tom Steyer: Open Medicare to all who want it

Eric Swalwell: Coverage for all, but don't eliminate private insurers

In March, Swalwell said he supports "coverage for all" but is not in favor of eliminating private insurers, as some of his competitors are. A page that was once dedicated to the issue on his website is currently not working.

Andrew Yang: ObamaCare is only a good first step

• Yang has called the Affordable Care Act a good first step but believes the law didn't do enough to reform the nation's health care system.
• He would shift the country toward a single-payer system, with a focus on salaried physicians and holistic medicine.
• The entrepreneur's health care platform also focuses on mental health.
• He has proposed funding artificial intelligence efforts that could improve mental health services and would create a "White House psychologist corps."

Beto O`Rourke: Medicare-X: government-run public option

• Health care: Create a government-run health insurance plan as one option for Americans.
• O'Rourke wants to create a health care "public option" he called "Medicare-X," which would offer all Americans a government-run insurance plan as a potential choice.
• It would leave employer-sponsored health insurance and other core elements of the current system intact.

Jay Inslee: Take initial steps towards universal health care

Bill Weld: Supports increased Medicaid access

Amy Klobuchar: Expand Medicare to age 55

Amy Klobuchar: Allow Medicare to directly negotiate prices

John Delaney: No Medicare for All, but yes universal health care

• Health care: Create universal health care program, but not "Medicare for All."
• Delaney envisions creating a government health care program for all Americans under the age of 65, after which they could enroll in Medicare.
• The plan would enshrine healthcare as a right for all Americans while still allowing people the choice of buying into the private market.
• Delaney opposes "Medicare for All," saying that Medicare works and should be left alone.
• In Congress, he was a vocal supporter of the Affordable Care Act and was open to adding a public option, as well as expanding Medicare for people over the age of 55.

Cory Booker: Allow importing prescription drugs to lower Rx prices

• In early January, Booker joined Sanders to sponsor a series of bills to lower the cost of prescription drugs by tying prices to other developed countries; allowing the importation of medication from Canada; and directing the Department of Health and Human Services to negotiate lower drug prices for Medicare.
• Two years earlier, Booker angered progressives when he voted against another Sanders-backed amendment to allow Americans to buy cheaper prescription drugs from Canada.
• At the time, Booker cited concerns about the safety standards of imported drugs.
• Booker, who represents a state with a large number of pharmaceutical companies, put a "pause" on campaign donations from the industry nearly two years ago after receiving criticism from Democrats. He later vowed to reject any corporate PAC contributions.

Cory Booker: Backs Medicare-for-All

• Booker calls health care an "American right" and co-sponsored "Medicare for All" legislation introduced by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.
• The government-run plan would be phased in over four years and end the private insurance market as it currently exists.
• It would be paid for by a tax on employers and increased taxes on capital gains and on incomes exceeding $250,000.
• Booker had previously defended the Affordable Care Act but stopped short of supporting a single-payer plan.

Kamala Harris: End private health insurance with Medicare for All

• Health care: Move to universal, government-run health care, or "Medicare for All."
• Harris backs the "Medicare for All" bill sponsored by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.
• That bill would establish government-run health care system that allows every American to have access to care and end private health insurance as it currently exists.
• The bill would pay for that system in part with a 6.2 percent charge on employers, a 2.2 percent fee on most families that would vary at some income levels, increased marginal tax rates for incomes $250,000 and higher, increased taxes on capital gains, and an increased estate tax for the wealthiest.
• Harris has also introduced bills to increase access to mental health care and address high maternal mortality rates for black women.

Kirsten Gillibrand: Basic Health Program: offer lower-priced health insurance

• Health care: Move to a universal, government-run health care system within four years.
• Gillibrand was a co-sponsor of the "The Medicare for All Act," a proposal led by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., which would ban private health insurance and transition the U.S. to a government-run health system within four years.
• The bill offers a few funding options, including a new tax on the wealthiest 0.1 percent, and a new premium based on income.
• Gillibrand has also proposed expanding the "Basic Health Program," part of the Affordable Care Act, so that states can offer lower-priced health insurance to more people.

Tulsi Gabbard: Supports Medicare-for-All; tax wealthiest 5% to pay for it

Julian Castro: Medicare for all, paid for by tax on wealthy

• Health care: Create a universal health care system, "Medicare for all."
• Castro has called for "universal health care," also referring to it as "Medicare for all."
• He indicated he would consider paying for such a system by raising taxes on corporations and on the wealthiest "0.05, 0.5 or 1 percent" of Americans.