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As some health policy experts cast the running mate of Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris as a "healthcare champion" and pragmatist, others argued that while Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) may appeal to those who are moderate, his healthcare record is anything but.

More West Coast, Less Midwest

Grace-Marie Turner, founder and president of the Galen Institute, a conservative think tank in Paeonian Springs, Virginia, was not impressed with Walz's record on health policy.

Walz is a teacher, farmer, gun owner, and veteran -- a profile that might be very appealing to moderate voters. "But when you look at his record, it shows much more liberal tendencies," Turner said.

In Congress, he voted to move the Affordable Care Act forward. As governor of Minnesota, Walz pushed a more liberal agenda after following the 2022 elections, Turner noted.

For example, he signed a law that made abortion a fundamental right statewide, legalized recreational marijuana, and poured taxpayer money and federal funds into state programs whenever possible, she said. Altogether, these actions make him appear "much more like a Californian" than a moderate Midwesterner, she added.

Peter Nelson, JD, a senior policy fellow at the Center of the American Experiment, based in Minnetonka, Minnesota, agreed that Walz has moved Minnesota in a "very leftward direction."

The Public Option

Anthony Wright, the incoming executive director for Families USA in Washington, D.C., pointed out that since Walz voted to defend the Affordable Care Act and built on its protections to further expand access and affordability, Minnesota now has one of the .

In 2018, Walz campaigned on a MinnesotaCare public option. Todd Lippert, a former Minnesota state representative, who now leads the Rural Organizing Project of Faith in Minnesota, praised the move, calling it a "game-changer" for uninsured farmers, small business owners, and others afraid to use their private insurance because it's too expensive.

After Democrats took control in Minnesota, Walz was able to lead on the public option and see a bill passed, and a state public option is now expected to launch in 2027, Lippert said.

Nelson argued that the problem with this approach is that "in Minnesota ... we have one of the most highly effective reinsurance programs that keep premiums among the lowest in the country in the individual market."

Yet Walz and the Democratic legislature have essentially cast that aside to move towards a public option, he said.

"The more we move ... towards government control over the healthcare system, the more we depart from being able to utilize the power of competition within the healthcare system to deliver better, higher-quality care at a lower cost for all Americans."

He added that his big concern is that a Harris-Walz administration might move the country towards a single-payer system.

A Divisive COVID Response

According to Turner, Walz was criticized for his "very aggressive" COVID response, which included requiring indoor and outdoor masking in public spaces and establishing a and other violations of social distancing rules to the government.

A made it all the way to the state Supreme Court, she noted, but the court ultimately sided with Walz, stating that his decision to declare a .

Nelson recalled that Minnesota had and record-high COVID cases and deaths among staff and residents.

He also blamed setbacks in children's academic progress and their mental health struggles on Walz's decision to shut down the state's education system and sporting activities.

While Walz eventually signed bills to increase funding for children's mental health, he was "pretty late to the game," Nelson said.

Lippert disagreed, noting that Walz "really followed the science when states around Minnesota and their governors didn't. ... More people survived in Minnesota because of Walz's leadership, and that took a tremendous amount of courage."

Andrea Harris, director of policy programs for Protect Our Care in Washington, D.C., said that Walz is a "champion for children's well-being and health," noting that he signed a bill mandating universal meals at schools.

Abortion Rights Advocate

In a, Mini Timmaraju, president and CEO of the nonprofit Reproductive Freedom for All in Washington, D.C., called a Harris-Walz ticket "the most pro-reproductive freedom presidential ticket in U.S. history."

As governor, Walz signed , becoming the first state after the overturning of Roe v. Wade to do so. Walz also signed legislation protecting patients who receive abortions and their providers from arrest and extradition for accessing or providing care that is legal in Minnesota, the press release noted.

Walz is also in advocating for access to in vitro fertilization. He and his wife, Gwen, spent 7 years undergoing fertility treatments before she became pregnant with their daughter.

Roger Severino, vice president of domestic policy and a fellow at the Heritage Foundation in Washington, D.C., took a different view, telling MedPage Today that "Walz is responsible for the cruelest and most inhumane abortion laws in America."

"As governor, he signed into law taxpayer-funded abortion for anyone, at any time, for any reason, right up to birth," Severino said. He added that Walz also rolled back "laws requiring life-saving medical care for and are fighting to live."

Asked whether some voters may view Walz's policies on abortion and a public option as extreme, Harris of Protect Our Care said that extensive polling by her organization shows these policies are "just completely reflective of what Americans want. ... This is common-sense healthcare policy."

High Drug Prices, Medical Debt

Walz passed a law capping insulin prices at $35 per month in 2020, following stories of young people who died after rationing the medication.

He also worked to tackle the problem of medical debt. A prohibits the reporting of medical debt to credit bureaus and transferring of medical debt to spouses, and prevents healthcare providers from refusing to provide medically necessary care due to unpaid debt.

As Wright of Families USA noted, Walz lost his father to cancer as a teenager, leaving his mother saddled with medical debt, which shaped his policies.

"That last week cost my mom a decade of having to go back to work to pay those bills," Walz said in a.

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