Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Harris, Democrats Signal Importance Of Health Care On Election
The Hill: Harris: There Is No Vaccine For Racism
Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) highlighted the disproportionate impact the coronavirus is having on communities of color, as well as further issues of racial injustice the Democratic vice presidential candidate said can’t be cured with a vaccine. “This virus has no eyes, and yet it knows exactly how we see each other—and how we treat each other,” she said Wednesday night during her convention speech. “And let’s be clear—there is no vaccine for racism. We’ve gotta do the work.” (Klar, 8/19)
The Washington Post: The Four Issues Besides Coronavirus That Democrats Are Hammering In Their Convention
The slap-you-in-the-face message from the Democratic National Convention is that President Trump has failed Americans on the coronavirus and that Joe Biden can do better. Also that Biden is a good guy. But even though letting Trump struggle to manage the coronavirus pandemic is working for Democrats in the polls, they also need to have other issues to run on, especially in local and congressional races that are more Trump-leaning. So here are four policy issues that Democrats are bringing up in the convention and our analysis on whether they’re smart to be talking about them. (Philips, 8/19)
In other news from the Biden campaign —
Vox: How Joe Biden’s Health Care Plan Would Build On Obamacare
If Biden beats Trump in the November election and becomes president in January 2021, he will be charged with finishing the project of universal health care started under President Obama. He will likely assume office in the right moment to make big changes — not unlike when he was sworn in as vice president in 2009. The question will be whether he has the will and opportunity to do it. (Scott, 8/20)
ABC News: Biden Campaign Launches COVID-19-Focused Ad As Former VP Set To Formally Accept Democratic Nomination
On the day he is slated to accept his party’s nomination for President of the United States, Joe Biden’s campaign is rolling out a new television ad on Thursday hammering President Donald Trump’s response to the coronavirus pandemic and extolling the former vice president’s leadership in times of crisis. The new ad, entitled “What Happens Now,” lays out a series of fundamental questions facing many Americans grappling with the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic. (Verhovek, 8/20)
Stat: Bolstered Testing And Daily Briefings: Inside Biden’s Covid-19 Response Plan
No president has ever inherited a pandemic. But if Joe Biden is elected in November, he has made clear that his first moments in office would mark a dramatic shift in the nation’s approach to Covid-19. (Facher, 8/20)
Kaiser Health News and Politifact HealthCheck: Democratic Convention, Night 2: Defending The ACA And Attacking Trump On Pandemic
The second night of the 2020 Democratic National Convention featured a 17-person keynote speech, past presidents, a roll call vote that doubled as a virtual tour of the United States and an emphasis on health care and national security issues. Ady Barkan, a health care activist paralyzed by ALS, appeared in a video — speaking with a computer-generated voice in support of Joe Biden. “Nearly 100 million Americans do not have sufficient health insurance,” he said. Barkan emerged on the national scene as a backer of “Medicare for All,” an approach Biden does not support. (8/19)
And on voting safety —
Politico: Republicans Quietly Push Mail-In Voting Despite Trump Claims
President Donald Trump may rail against mail-in ballots in public, but state and local Republicans are quietly telling Americans that’s exactly how they should vote. In Iowa, the Republican Party mailed absentee ballot applications to voters without waiting for requests. In Pennsylvania, the GOP’s website promotes voting by mail: "Vote Safe: By mail. From home.” And in Ohio, the Republican Party sent mailers with Trump’s photo saying “Join President Trump and Vote by Absentee Ballot.” (Kumar, 8/19)
