Exclusive–Mike Braun: Health Care Will Be the Defining Issue for 2020 Presidential Election

Sen. Mike Braun (R-IN) told Breitbart News in an exclusive interview Tuesday that he believes that health care will be the defining issue of the 2020 presidential election.

Sen. Mike Braun (R-IN) spoke with Breitbart News in an extensive interview on his first 100 days in office, on his health care reforms, and Democrats’ hysteria in the face of the Robert Mueller report concluding that Donald Trump did not collude with the Russian government during the 2016 presidential election.

Health care became a focal point of the national dialogue after President Donald Trump backed a lawsuit that would eliminate the entire Affordable Care Act (ACA). Trump declared shortly after that Republicans would become the party of health care.

Sen. Braun, along with other freshmen Republican senators such as Rick Scott (R-FL) and Josh Hawley (R-MO), have proposed solutions ranging from greater transparency as well as reforming drug pricing and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to help improve the healthcare industry.

In previous interviews with Breitbart News, Braun contended that Republicans have failed in the past on health care because they have been “apologists for the health care industry.” The Hoosier Republican also said that they need to “force” the conversation of healthcare reform onto the industry’s back or else Medicare for All will win.

Sen. Braun contended that with President Trump winning the national conversation over illegal immigration, the 2020 presidential election will shift over to health care, where Democrats believe they hold an advantage over Republicans.

“It will be and I think Leader McConnell is correct, we weren’t ready for primetime with a comprehensive plan,” Braun said.

The Hoosier Republican explained, “We first of all need to stop being apologists for the industry for the biggest issue out there which is health care. Border security is important, and I think that health care exceeds that in terms of importance. I think the case, by the way, made for us for better border security because I think independents and some conservative Democrats are going to see that Trump is mostly right because people are coming in at increasing numbers and I think now politically, it’s good to do it to get in the system.”

“I think for health care, we got have to start holding the industry accountable, quit being apologists for the broken system there, get them to start reforming and start fixing themselves before the Green New Deal and Medicare for All [win]; which to me, Democrats always get ahead of us on issues, even to the point where they put out crazy talk,” Braun continued.

Many 2020 Democrat presidential candidates have pushed for a Medicare for All proposal as part of their campaign platform; however, many have failed to explain if their plan would eliminate private health insurance. Although many Americans remain skeptical about a single-payer, government-run healthcare plan, Sen. Braun said if Republicans do not move forward with credible solutions, Medicare for All will win.

Win Bigly author and Dilbert comic writer Scott Adams also contended that, because Trump won on the economy and border security, 2020 will become a national referendum on health care.

“The election will probably come down to healthcare. If Trump comes up short on healthcare, he loses. His successes on economics, national security, trade, and more will be taken for granted by election day 2020,” Adams suggested.

Given the Hoosier Republican’s prognostication, Braun said that he will continue to lead on the health care issue, where he can offer dynamic solutions that will lower costs, provide more transparency, and make it easier for Americans to receive quality health care.

“I think pecking away [at reforms] getting the industry to do that, getting the industry to be responsible for putting health care as its currently delivered in the crosshairs of Medicare for All,” Braun said.

Sen. Braun also said he told industry leaders that they need to reform themselves by coming up with creative solutions so that they can lower costs and provide more transparency to the American public. 

Braun said, “I was just at a healthcare roundtable this morning and my statement was, ‘Hey, you’re the smart people, you benefit from it, you deliver from us an expensive system that does have some advantages over other places across the world, it costs too much. Why don’t you suprise us for a change and start doing some things that are maybe going to hurt you in the short run but some of you in the long run to keep the best of what’s there but quit holding onto the lack of transparency and the lack of competition and do some self-reformation.”

“That’s what works in all other markets is transparency, competition, and consumers being smart and having skin in the game. We’ve had hardly any of that in today’s current health care,” Braun said.