Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Hickenlooper Officially Tosses Hat Into 2020 Ring: Here's Where The Moderate Governor Stands On Health Issues
John Hickenlooper, the two-time Colorado governor and former brewpub owner who has overseen Colorado’s remarkable economic expansion, declared his candidacy for president on Monday. Mr. Hickenlooper, 67, a socially progressive, pro-business Democrat who has called himself an “extreme moderate,” had long said he was considering a run, and made early visits to Iowa and New Hampshire. (Turkewitz, 3/4)
Mr. Hickenlooper supports universal health care in principle but has refused to get behind specific proposals like “Medicare for all.” Speaking in New Hampshire last month, he said that there were “many different ways to cut the pie and work on the issue” and that intraparty arguments over the specifics were counterproductive. He did, however, explicitly reject the idea of eliminating private insurance companies, as promoted by Senators Bernie Sanders and Kamala Harris. During his governorship, Mr. Hickenlooper and Colorado’s divided Legislature expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, a fact he highlighted as speculation about a possible presidential run increased. (Astor, 3/4)
