Joe Biden will now officially represent the Democrats in the 2020 presidential election, and the former vice president and senator announced plans late Thursday regarding Medicare and student loan debt in what looks to be an effort to woo Bernie Sanders supporters and unite the party.
Biden announced Thursday that if he wins the presidential election in November he will reduce the Medicare eligibility age from 65 to 60.
“This would make Medicare available to a set of Americans who work hard and retire before they turn 65, or who would prefer to leave their employer plans, the public option, or other plans they access through the Affordable Care Act before they retire,” Biden wrote in a post on Medium.
The announcement came just one day after Biden’s final real competition, Sanders, an Independent Vermont senator, announced he has suspended his campaign.
Biden leans much closer to the center of the political spectrum, especially when compared to some of his more progressive competition like Sanders, who is a self-avowed Democratic Socialist who was pushing “Medicare for All.” The move to reduce Medicare’s age limit is a clear effort to bring some of the more left-leaning voters into the Biden camp.
Anyone could still opt out or stay on their employer plans, which is fairly conservative compared to pushes by Sanders and other for government-backed, single payer health care programs.
“Of course, those who prefer to remain on their employer plans would be permitted to do so, and employers would have to comply with non-discrimination laws and would be prohibited from excluding older workers from coverage or otherwise try to push them out of their plans,” Biden added. “And the Biden Medicare-like public option — as well as other subsidized private plans available to individuals through the Affordable Care Act — would remain available.”
How would the plan be funded? Biden mentions that “any new Federal cost associated with this option would be financed out of general revenues to protect the Medicare Trust Fund.”
Biden is also targeting student loan debt with a forgiveness plan for low- and middle-income individuals who attended public colleges and universities, another appeal to win over some of Sanders’ base.
“Under this plan, I propose to forgive all undergraduate tuition-related federal student debt from two- and four-year public colleges and universities for debt-holders earning up to $125,000, with appropriate phase-outs to avoid a cliff,” Biden wrote.
The plan would see the federal government taking over monthly payments “until the forgivable portion of the loan was paid off.”
Biden has already proposed cancelling a minimum of $10,000 of student debt per person, along with other ideas that would help lower-income individuals.
The former vice president would finance this plan “by repealing the high-income ‘excess business losses’ tax cut” that was part of the recently passed Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, or CARES Act.
“That tax cut overwhelmingly benefits the richest Americans and is unnecessary for addressing the current COVID-19 economic relief efforts,” Biden wrote.
Editor’s note: Is Biden’s proposal to lower the Medicare eligibility age to 60 a good idea? Share your thoughts below.