Hillary Clinton on Saturday proposed increasing federal money for
community health centers and outlined steps to expand access to health
care across the nation.
Clinton, the presumptive Democratic
presidential nominee, made the proposal as a nod to primary rival Sen.
Bernie Sanders, at the Democratic National Convention's full Platform
Committee meeting in Orlando, Fla.
However, Sanders, who has yet
to endorse Clinton, failed in his quest to include opposition to the
Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal in a draft of the Democratic
Party's policy positions because several amendments against the deal
were voted down by Clinton supporters.
The platform will be announced at the party's nominating convention in Philadelphia starting July 25.
On
health care, Clinton's campaign says the proposal is part of her plan
to provide universal health care coverage in the United States. Clinton
also is reaffirming her support for a public-option insurance plan and
for expanding Medicare by letting people age 55 year and older opt in.
"We
have more work to do to finish our long fight to provide universal,
quality, affordable health care to everyone in America," Clinton said in
a statement, with the convention just a few weeks away.
Clinton's
campaign noted that Sanders had promoted doubling money for primary
care services at federally qualified health centers. Money for these
centers was increased under the Affordable Care Act, an effort led by
the Vermont senator.
According to the Clinton campaign, the
candidate’s proposal would make money for these centers permanent and
expand it by $40 billion over the next 10 years. Her campaign said the
money would be mandatory and not subject to annual appropriation. The
proposal would more than double the money for the centers, which
currently get $3.6 billion annually.
Sanders, in a conference call
after the Clinton campaign's announcement, said her proposal "will save
lives" and "ease suffering" and represented "an important step forward
in expanding health care in America and expanding health insurance and
health care access to tens of millions of Americans."
The health
care proposal follows on Clinton's recent announcement of new ways to
tackle college affordability, including a plan that ensures families
with annual incomes up to $125,000 pay no tuition at in-state public
colleges and universities.
That initiative also was seen as a
response to Sanders' call for free tuition at all public colleges and
universities, an idea popular with the young voters who flocked to his
rallies.
Clinton's policy overtures come as Sanders appears to be close to supporting her candidacy.
Two
Democrats with knowledge of Sanders' plans told The Associated Press
that Sanders was closing in on offering his public endorsement of
Clinton. The Democrats spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss
private conversations they were not authorized to disclose.
Clinton's campaign has announced a stop in New Hampshire on Tuesday but did not say whether Sanders also would attend.
Sanders
told reporters that the two campaigns "are coming closer and closer
together in trying to address the major issues facing this country."
Clinton
and Sanders frequently clashed over health care during the primaries.
Sanders campaigned on a "Medicare for all" plan that would have provided
universal coverage. Clinton said that would undercut President Barack
Obama's health law, rely too heavily on GOP governors and reopen a
contentious debate with Republicans in Congress.
Clinton's health
care priorities have centered on capping out-of-pocket costs for
prescription drugs and providing tax credits for families facing high
medical costs.
She has reiterated her support for a "public
option" for states to set up their own health insurance plan to compete
against private insurers.
Sanders was instrumental in passing legislation that would allow that.
Both
supported a public insurance option at the national level but
opposition from moderate Democrats prevented that proposal from being
included in the health overhaul law.
Sanders scored a major
victory Friday when the committee approved an amendment calling for
increasing the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour.
The
self-described "democratic socialist" had repeatedly called for the
increase during his surprisingly strong campaign for the Democratic
nomination. Clinton, had backed a $12 minimum wage, while saying she
approved a $15 minimum wage in certain places.
An early draft of
the platform contained language more consistent with Clinton’s position,
saying that “Americans should earn at least $15 an hour” without
explicitly calling for that to be the new federal minimum.
However,
the 187-member committee approved an amendment saying an increase from
the current federal minimum of $7.25 an hour to $15 should happen “over
time."
On the trade deal, during a combative meeting in a hotel
ballroom, members of full Platform Committee voted down amendments to
explicitly oppose the deal and to oppose a vote on it in Congress.
Instead, they endorsed an amendment that included stronger language governing trade deals, including the TPP.
Sanders and Clinton have come out against the trade deal, but President Obama supports it.
Clinton
supporters, including labor leaders, believed that toughening the trade
language made enough of a statement without directly opposing the
president, whom they did not mention during their public comments.
The
amendment said that trade deals "must protect workers and the
environment and not undermine access to critically needed prescription
drugs." It went on to say that Democrats would apply those standards "to
all trade agreements, including the Trans-Pacific Partnership."
Labor
leaders said after the vote that their amendment made clear where they
stand on TPP and that they oppose "bad trade deals." But Sanders backers
expressed their frustration with boos and angry shouts.
Sanders
supporter Benjamin Jealous, a former president of the NAACP argued that
language opposing the TPP would help Democrats win the presidential
election in November. "I want us to stop making it harder for us to win
and start making it easier for us to win," he said.
Since Clinton
effectively clinched the presidential nomination, Sanders has
aggressively campaigned to include his progressive policies in the party
platform. He has won a number of concessions, including a win Friday
with an amendment calling for increasing the federal minimum wage to $15
over time, indexed to inflation. The previous platform draft had not
included explicit language on a $15 federal minimum wage.
The
party guidelines also have language endorsing steps to break up large
Wall Street banks and urging an end to the death penalty. But Sanders is
looking for more before the meeting concludes. He wants the platform to
support a carbon tax to address climate change and seek a freeze on
hydraulic fracking.
The roughly 15,000-word platform is a
nonbinding document that serves as a guidepost for the party. After the
Orlando meeting, the document will be voted on at the convention in
Philadelphia this month. The Orlando meeting is not the final stop for
the Sanders' efforts. He could seek to revive some of these issues at
the convention.
Sanders has so far avoided endorsing Clinton, but
appears to be closing in on backing her campaign. He told reporters
Saturday that the campaigns are "coming closer and closer together in
trying to address the major issues facing this country."
