Kamala Harris has chosen a running mate. The vice president and Democratic presidential candidate announced on Tuesday that she has nominated Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her candidate for the 2024 presidential election.
“As a governor, coach, teacher and veteran, he has delivered for working families like his,” Harris wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “It’s great to have him on the team.”
Now that the Democratic candidates are set, many are wondering what a Harris-Walz victory might mean for the country going forward. A May 2024 Pew Research Center poll found that health care is a top concern for voters in this election, and there are questions about what Harris and Walz would potentially change on a number of health care issues in the country. Harris’ campaign is still in its early stages, and she has not yet expressed all of her views on the issue. But her history in several areas of health care suggests her stance on a number of issues.
Health experts stress that much of what Harris and Walz could accomplish in office depends largely on what happens in Congress. “This is still a divided country,” says Leighton Ku, PhD, MPH, director of the Center for Health Policy Research at the Milken Institute School of Public Health at George Washington University. “I don’t think Harris will have control of both houses of Congress, but anything can happen.”
“No matter who the president is, given the power and lobbying ability of health insurance companies, health care reform in the United States is a major challenge,” says Perry N. Halkitis, PhD, dean of the Rutgers School of Public Health.
Here’s what health policy researchers and a doctor think could change if Harris and Walz win the election in November.
Reproductive rights will take centre stage
Harris has repeatedly spoken out in favor of access to reproductive care. In December, she launched a Reproductive Freedoms Tour, hosting events to raise awareness of the consequences of abortion bans and tell the stories of people affected by strict reproductive rights legislation in their states.
“Extremists across our country continue to wage an all-out assault on hard-won freedoms by pushing their radical policies – from banning abortion in all 50 states and criminalizing doctors to forcing women to travel to other states to get necessary care,” she said in a statement at the time. “I will continue to fight for our fundamental freedoms, bringing together those across America who believe every woman should have the right to make decisions about her own body – not the government.”
In March, Harris also made what is believed to be the first official visit by a sitting president or vice president to an abortion clinic. During that visit, she called abortion access a “very serious health crisis facing women,” according to NPR.
“Harris is a longtime supporter of abortion rights, while Trump touts his Supreme Court appointments that led to the overturning of Roe v. Wade,” said Larry Levitt, executive vice president for health policy at KFF Assets.
Walz has also advocated for access to abortion care in the past. In 2023, he signed several bills to protect people seeking or having abortions in Minnesota. “Today, we are protecting the rights of Minnesotans and ensuring our state remains a place where people have the freedom to get the care they need to live their lives to the fullest,” he said in a statement at the time. “We are putting up a firewall to ensure Minnesotans have the freedom to make their own decisions about their health care.”
However, Levitt says a Harris-Waltz administration is likely to have limited success in what it can do. “How much Harris or Trump could do to affect abortion access would depend a lot on who controls Congress, but they could use executive action to change policy to some extent,” he says.
Ku agrees. “She may have room to do more in terms of executive action or really legal action to sue states that try to further restrict access to abortion,” he says. AssetsHarris could continue to advocate for requiring hospitals to perform abortions in emergency situations where a woman’s health is at stake, even in states where abortion is illegal, Levitt says.
Ultimately, Ku says, Harris will likely have the greatest impact on reproductive rights if she succeeds in appointing one or two new justices to the Supreme Court. “If she is elected president, I expect she will have the opportunity to appoint one or two Supreme Court justices during her term,” he says. “That leads to potentially changing the court.”
Healthcare could become more accessible and affordable
Yet policies on this are currently vague. “Harris has supported Medicare for All in the past and in 2019 put forward a proposal to gradually expand Medicare to all, with the option to enroll in private health insurance,” Levitt says. “Harris’ past support for Medicare for All is indicative of her desire to achieve universal health coverage, but I don’t expect her to push this on the campaign trail or if she wins the presidency.”
Walz has also stressed the importance of access to health care. “What Minnesotans want from their health care is simple,” Walz said in his 2019 inaugural address. “They don’t want to get sick in the first place. But when they do, they want care at a price they can afford and in a place close to home.”
Levitt says he expects the administration to focus more on making health insurance more affordable under the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.
Ku agrees that it’s unlikely Harris would put Medicare for All at the forefront now. “She remains in favor of expanding Medicaid and keeping the Affordable Care Act marketplace strong,” he says.
Further price caps may apply to certain medicines
Levitt points out that during the election campaign, Harris used the Biden-Harris administration’s political victory over the pharmaceutical industry as an opportunity to negotiate drug prices in the context of the Medicare crisis, including limiting insulin copayments to $35 per month. “She has indicated that she wants to continue to push these measures to reduce drug costs,” Levitt says.
“I expect she will continue to pursue the matter,” says Ku. However, he points out that “part of it is pending in court.”
Walz has also advocated for citizens to be able to pay for their medications in the past. In 2020, he signed a bill to help Minnesotans afford insulin. “Minnesotans should not die because they have to choose between food and the medicine they need to survive,” he said in a statement at the time. “Despite opposition from the pharmaceutical industry, the determination and courage of Minnesotans with diabetes, Minnesotans who have lost loved ones with diabetes, and their legislators have pushed this bill forward. It is nothing short of inspirational. This hard-fought bill will provide much-needed relief to Minnesotans struggling to afford their insulin. We must continue to put Minnesotans first and ensure that people don’t have to struggle to afford the treatment they need.”
Mariana Socal, PhD, associate professor in the department of health policy and management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, expects this to be a “key issue” for the Harris-Walz campaign. “Putting prescription drug affordability front and center and building on the accomplishments that Vice President Harris had during the Biden administration will likely be highlighted even more,” she says Assets“There would be a stronger basis for affordable drug prices.”
Consolidation of the healthcare system could be limited
Harris previously served as California’s attorney general, and during her tenure actively fought against healthcare industry consolidation – situations in which hospitals and other similar healthcare companies merge – according to Politico, primarily because of concerns about rising prices.
A Harris-Waltz administration could also try to combat private equity involvement in health care, Ku says. “Private equity invests because there is money to be made there,” he says. “But the quality of care could deteriorate somewhat when private equity is involved.”
Harris has not yet spoken publicly on the issue, but Ku expects she will do so in time. “I think the Harris administration might be interested in such things,” he says.
There may be more funding for care in nursing homes
Ku points out that many problems with nursing homes in the U.S. became apparent at the height of the pandemic. “Nursing homes are still struggling,” he says. “They’re having a lot of trouble finding qualified staff.” Under the Biden-Harris administration, the Department of Health and Human Services has issued new staffing requirements for nursing homes, Ku notes.
Walz has also advocated for support for care in the past. In August 2023, he helped raise $173 million in funding to support care for Minnesotans. “This session, we worked across party lines to prioritize the needs of middle-class families and seniors. We are directly supporting nursing homes across the state to ensure Minnesota’s seniors receive the quality care and safe environment they deserve,” he said in a statement. “By funding nursing homes and investing in workforce incentives, we are working to ensure our seniors have access to quality care while bringing new workers into this important profession and building the workforce of the future.”
Also in April, Harris announced regulations to improve access to long-term care and the quality of nursing jobs. “A lot of people said, ‘Great, but how are we going to pay for it?'” Ku says, suggesting that a Harris-Waltz administration could try to increase funding for nursing homes — which would be well received given the aging baby boomer population. “I expect we’ll see that issue,” he says.
Overall, experts stress that there is still a lot to learn about what the Harris-Walz duo would do for health care if elected. “The election campaign is still so young,” says Ku. “But we must not forget that what happens with Congress and the current Supreme Court are the factors that limit change.”
