“The ACA Saved My Life.” Ernst Called Out On Health Care Votes

On By Josh Cook

“About two years ago, I walked into a doctor’s office with a nagging cough and walked out with a stage-four cancer diagnosis,” said Laura Packard, a cancer survivor and health care activist. “But I’m still here today because the Affordable Care Act saved my life.” Packard is now in remission, but says she couldn’t have afforded her six months of chemotherapy and month of radiation treatments without the Affordable Care Act – the one thing keeping her insurable. “If my cancer returns, I will be bankrupt or dead without good health insurance,” explained Packard. “That’s why we’re going around, state […]

Poll: Iowans Want Medicare Negotiation; Grassley Opposes

On By Josh Cook

A new poll from Public Policy Polling shows that 86% of Iowans, including 83% of Iowa Republicans and 81% of Iowans who voted for President Trump, would support legislation that would allow Medicare to negotiate prescription prices with drug companies. This poll is being released ahead of a Senate Finance Committee hearing, where Chairman Chuck Grassley is leading a bill to reduce pharmaceutical costs. However, Grassley has gone on the record this year to oppose Medicare negotiations, instead looking for other ways to reduce costs. In January, Grassley told The Hill that he doesn’t want to “mess with the government […]

5 Character-Defining Moments From AARP Candidate Forums

On By Josh Cook

Watching eight hours of forums is a lot to process. Unless you’re going to sit down and watch all of them, like I did, it’s hard to get a feel for how the candidates truly feel about some of these issues. Even then, it can all get sort of jumbled into one big discussion. If you’re relying on news coverage, which we recommend, that will provide adequate analysis, but it can still fall short of providing the full picture of the candidates’ character. Throughout the week, there was a handful of moments where this shined through. So, while these are […]

I Watched 8 Hours Of 2020 AARP Forums. Here’s What I Learned.

On By Josh Cook

Last week, coincidentally timed with AARP/Des Moines Register candidate forums, nearly all of the Democratic presidential candidates rolled out long-term health care plans, as well as plans to strengthen social security and combat rising health care costs. While rising costs have been a major topic of discussion in Iowa during the summer, most of the conversation up to this point has been acknowledging problems. After watching every single candidate’s AARP forum, one thing is incredibly clear: the candidates know what the health care problems are. From the cap on taxable income, to pay-for-delay, loopholes in the tax code, unregulated pricing […]