Some 50 million Americans, including 9 million children,  are without health insurance. Our health care system is in dire need of improvements. The first question when you go to your doctor should be “How are you?” not “How are you going to pay?” We must broaden coverage and access to ensure medical care is available and affordable to everyone, not just the privileged.
 
We need a health care system that values prevention and public health outreach, instead of merely a narrow focus on emergency care. Currently, only 4 cents out of every dollar spent on health care goes to preventative measures. By changing the way we do healthcare, we can find a more efficient and cost-effective health care system:
 
One that looks to reduce costs and improve quality,
One that has doctors making health decisions not insurers,
One that has more coverage options and less administrative costs,
One that puts the patient back into patient care and the family back into family practitioner.
 
We can do this, and do it right. We can increase the number of doctors, reduce unproductive administrative costs, negotiate lower drug prices, spread costs across a system that everyone contributes to, and increase access for all Americans.  And we must.
 
I am committed to improved health care. I will work across party lines to make sure we garner the resources to provide smart, cost-effective, and efficient systems, to provide better national organization, and to make sure we can better contribute to the growth and health of Americans.