Stephanie Ruhle featured Harry Smith with a focus group of swing voters in Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley, and healthcare was at the top of their list.
"We are keeping an eye on a few states that could swing the election like Pennsylvania. Just four years later there is one issue that is still at the top of voters minds," she said.
"How important is health insurance to you?" Smith said.
"Basically if I don't have my medications over 36 hour period, I will die."
"It is too expensive, our deductible is still $10,000."
"I worked at Wells Fargo for 13 years, I had a job that at the time paid $17 an hour and I could not afford healthcare."
"I like universal health care. I like what I have seen in other countries. I don't care what the American way is, really, I want change."
"Here to weigh in is Genesis Ortega. She has been speaking to voters in this very key county. That conversation right there, is that consistent with what you hear from voters on the ground?" Ruhle asked.
"Absolutely. Health care is a huge issue for voters and people in the Lehigh Valley. The important thing to know is that access to health care is there for people in the Lehigh Valley. The issue is the affordability of the health care. The Lehigh Valley is so diverse but it has a huge blue collar population and you see people working two and three jobs, really, to make needs meet," Ortega said.
"Charlie, should candidates simply be laser focused on affordability of life?" Ruhle said.
"This is a huge winning issue for Democrats if they don't overplay their hand. And i think you saw this in 2018. The problem is that Republicans will flip the script if it becomes a question of taking away your private health insurance, and coming up with a Medicare for All plan that costs $30 trillion," Charlie Sykes said.
"Are they going to make this a net negative, something that the Republicans are going to play on? We're a center left and a center right country. There are swing voters in places like Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. And if the focus is on how can we make health care more affordable, what is Donald Trump's plan? I think that is a significant negative for the Republicans. On the other hand, this whole question of Medicare for All, I think it is a potential hand grenade for Democrats in 2020."
