Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D), who was tapped Tuesday to be Vice President Harris, brings a progressive approach to health care with a focus on reducing costs.
Walz said his health policy priorities have been shaped in part by his personal experience. His father died of cancer when Walz was 19, leaving his mother drowning in medical debt.
In June, Walz signed a law that prohibits medical providers from withholding necessary medical care due to unpaid debts.
With a Democratic state legislature, Walz launched a prescription drug affordability council that could set limits on what insurers pay. He signed a bill to help people buy insulin in emergencies, and the state this year reached an agreement with Eli Lilly to cap all insulin prices at $35 for the next five years.
During his tenure as governor, Minnesota also implemented a drug price transparency initiative.
In his first inaugural address in 2019, Walz said he wanted to reaffirm healthcare in the state as a human right.
“What Minnesotans want from their health care is simple. First of all, they don’t want to get sick. But if they do, they want care at a price they can afford and in a location close to home,” Walz said.
“As Minnesotans, we can figure out how to deliver health care more effectively, more affordably and with better outcomes. We can and must ensure that all Minnesotans have access to quality care at a price they can afford.”
Walz also advocated for the Minnesota Health Care Access Fund, which helps finance health care coverage for the state’s low-income residents.
The former high school teacher has demonstrated a pragmatic approach to health care policy, especially when it comes to encouraging medical companies to continue operating in his state.
Walz supported watering down a hospital price transparency law after the Mayo Clinic — the state’s largest employer — threatened to pull billions of dollars in new investments. The threat also led Walz and the Democratic Legislature to backtrack on a bill that would have mandated minimum nursing staffing ratios in hospitals and clinics.
On abortion, Walz intended to make Minnesota a safe haven for access after the end of Roe v. Wade.
He signed a bill that makes the right to abortion a state law. Abortion in Minnesota is legal until fetal viability, typically around 23 to 25 weeks. Harris in March visited a Planned Parenthood clinic in Minnesota that offers abortions, becoming the first U.S. vice president to visit an abortion clinic.
Walz also eliminated a mandatory 24-hour waiting period and parental consent requirement and signed an abortion “protection law” to protect health care providers and patients from abortion-related lawsuits in other states.
Last year, Walz signed legislation legalizing marijuana for adult use in his state. In addition to ushering in a new legalized cannabis industry in Minnesota, the bill also allowed some low-level marijuana offenses to be expunged from criminal records.
During his time in Congress, Walz showed his willingness to cross party leaders.
Walz voted for the Affordable Care Act in 2010 and has never supported any of the GOP replacements. The 2010 vote was one of the factors that put him in the Republican crosshairs, but he still managed to be re-elected.
But in 2015, he voted in favor of a bill repealing the excise tax on medical devices, putting him at odds with then-President Obama, who had promised to veto earlier versions of the bill.
The law was temporarily suspended in 2016 and revoked by former President Trump in 2019.
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
