Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., emailed her supporters Dec. 31 that she was creating an exploratory committee for a 2020 presidential run in order to fill key staff positions before a formal announcement of her candidacy, according to The New York Times.
Three things to know about Ms. Warren's stance on healthcare issues:
1. Ms. Warren supports single-payer healthcare proposals.
"President Obama tried to move us forward with healthcare coverage by using a conservative model that came from one of the conservative think tanks that had been advanced by a Republican governor in Massachusetts,” Ms. Warren told The Wall Street Journal in 2017. "Now it’s time for the next step. And the next step is single-payer."
2. Ms. Warren partnered with Sens. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Kamala Harris, D-Calif., Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., and Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., in March to propose the Consumer Health Insurance Protection Act. The bill would limit private insurance company profits, create systems to better track complaints against insurers and require insurers that participate in Medicare and Medicaid programs to also offer coverage in areas with limited options on ACA exchanges. The bill would also increase cost-sharing subsidies and premium tax credits to make ACA coverage more affordable.
3. In an effort to lower the cost of prescription drugs, Ms. Warren has proposed legislation that would allow the federal government to manufacture generic drugs when no company is producing a generic option, if up to two companies are manufacturing a drug but there are price hikes or drug shortages, or if the pricing of a drug labeled "essential" by the World Health Organization makes it difficult for patients to access.