Major Health Law and Policy Positions Among 2020 Democratic Presidential Candidates.

Abstract

Assuring the nation’s health promises to be among the premier political objectives underlying the 2020 U.S. Presidential election. A diverse field of 23 leading Democratic-declared Presidential candidates (ages 37-77 years) are prioritizing health issues. Assessing candidates’ positions since the inception of their campaigns, we have identified 10 primary health law and policy platforms as of June 1, 2019 (see Table 1 and research methodology). Candidates’ dominant themes center on universal health care, climate change, and reproductive rights. Many also address policies on mental health coverage, gun violence prevention, and Affordable Care Act (ACA) reforms. Just over half of candidates are opining on regulated substances (e.g., opioids, cannabis), health interests and rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) persons, and lowering of prescription drug prices. The candidates’ varying ideas on these issues deviate significantly from the current administration and, at times, from each other.