In an article titled, “The 2020 Dem who may actually now how to fix health care,” POLITICO reporter Dan Goldberg highlights Governor Jay Inslee’s accomplishments in the health care arena. Although his campaign largely focuses on climate change, Goldberg writes, “the two-term Washington governor can credibly claim to have accomplished more than most of his peers on health care, a key issue in the 2020 campaign.”
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In recent weeks, 2020 Democratic candidates have rolled out a series of sweeping health care proposals such as Joe Biden’s plan that builds on the ACA, and Kamala Harris’ new Medicare for All plan.
While these high-profile candidates debate the merits of their various ideas, Inslee’s position as a governor offers him the opportunity to point to concrete actions, legislative wins, and programs carried out in his home state during his time as chief executive.
“While the debate for now is about what could be done, Inslee can boast he actually got something done,” writes Goldberg.
“‘I respect everybody’s goals and plans here, but we do have one candidate that’s actually advanced the ball,’ Inslee said during the first 2020 primary debate last month.”
The piece calls attention to several health care reforms passed and implemented during Inslee’s time as governor – including Washington’s public option and the Long-Term Care Trust Act passed by the legislature this year.
The article also points to surprise billing legislation from this year, Inslee’s Hepatitis C medication purchasing proposal, and the expansion of reproductive rights in the state.
“There’s not a single thing Democrats are talking about nationally that we haven’t done in some form in Washington state,” Democratic state Sen. David Frockt, who sponsored the public option bill, told POLITICO.
However, despite these health care wins, Inslee’s campaign says the climate crisis is at a “tipping point” and that focusing on the issue is critical.
“In another time, Inslee would be running on his health care record, his campaign said. But not now. Inslee, who is among the many Democratic presidential candidates in the crowded field struggling to crack 1 percent in the polls, said he doesn’t have any second thoughts about staking his long-shot bid on tackling climate change, even if that overshadows his health policy accomplishments,” Goldberg writes.
“‘Those things … become relatively moot if the entire ecosystem collapses on which human life depends,’ Inslee told POLITICO earlier this month. ‘This is a unique issue. It is unique because our survival literally depends upon it.’”
This article is cross-posted on our sister site, State of Reform.
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