The newly elected Democratic majorities in the House and Senate will face significant pressure from voters to deliver lower healthcare costs next year in the lead-up to the 2028 presidential cycle.
Healthcare costs were top of mind for voters on Tuesday as Democrats won historic victories in the House and Senate in a midterm election that was largely seen as a repudiation of President Donald Trump’s economic policy, including his failure to address the rising costs of healthcare.
Half of voters regardless of party reported that the cost of living was “crucial” to their candidate choice on Tuesday, according to exit polling data from the healthcare policy group KFF.
Of those cost-of-living concerns, nearly 6 in 10 voters said they were very concerned about healthcare costs, putting it on par with being able to afford gasoline and groceries.
Mollyann Brodie, chief operating officer of KFF and head of the group’s public opinion research, said during a roundtable on Thursday that the question will be whether Democrats will be able to deliver on lowering costs quickly enough to earn the long-term trust of voters.
“Expectations are high among voters right now, and they are needing action on health costs,” Brodie said. “And for now, they do trust the Dems more than Republicans to deliver on that, but it’s not that they’re just madly in love with the Democratic Party.”
Healthcare was the Democratic Party’s strongest issue compared to Republicans, with roughly half of voters saying they believed Democrats would be able to deliver more, compared to 30% supporting Republicans.
Six in 10 voters who responded to the exit polls, including nearly 30% of Republicans, said they believed the government should play a bigger role in helping Americans get healthcare.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) told the New York Times in an interview on Friday that Democrats must work toward tangible policy solutions for lowering the cost of living rather than solely investigating the Trump administration’s alleged corruption.
“Cost is number one, meaning focus on reducing the cost for the American people,” Schumer said. “If we just did corruption, we’d be a loser. If we didn’t do any corruption — you got to do some but not let it overshadow and take away what we can do on costs.”
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), who is poised to lead the Senate’s health committee, outlined his priorities for lowering the burden of healthcare costs for American families on Thursday in a video address posted on X.
In addition to passing his signature Medicare for All single-payer healthcare bill, Sanders said initial priorities for Democrats must include lowering the age at which seniors can be covered by Medicare and providing federally funded health insurance for minors regardless of income.
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“As an immediate first step, Democrats must lower the Medicare eligibility age from 65 down to 55, expand Medicare to cover dental, vision, and hearing, and guarantee universal healthcare coverage for every child from birth through age 19,” he said.
Sanders said these policies can be passed with a 51-vote majority in the Senate through the budget reconciliation process that circumvents the filibuster rule requiring 60 votes.
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[ H/T Washington Examiner ]
