Last week in Florida, at the University of Tampa, President Joe Biden promised to protect and strengthen Social Security and Medicare, as well as lower health care costs. Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Medicare is funded by a combination of money paid directly to the federal government from paychecks and taxes paid by working Americans. Most dental procedures and tests are not covered under traditional Medicare. Cavan Images/Getty Images hide caption

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett's first opportunity to weigh in on abortion and contraception could come as early as this week, as the high court decides whether to take up a Mississippi case. Demetrius Freeman/Bloomberg/Getty Images hide caption

Casa de Salud clinicians, staff and health apprentices socially distance outside their New Mexico clinic. The facility is one of many social safety net clinics that haven't yet received pandemic-related funding and are now on the brink financially. Elizabeth Boyce/Casa de Salud hide caption

Former Vice President Joe Biden at a press conference in Wilmington, Del., in mid-March. His bid this week to allow 60-year-olds to get Medicare "reflects the reality," he says, "that, even after the current crisis ends, older Americans are likely to find it difficult to secure jobs." Bloomberg via Getty Images hide caption

Overall, U.S. health spending is more than twice the average of other Western nations, and it's not just a matter of high drug prices. No wonder voters list health and the high price of care as one of their major election concerns as they head to the polls. YinYang/Getty Images hide caption

Abortion-rights supporters demonstrate last May in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington. A high court decision in a case that could curtail or even overturn Roe v. Wade is set for opening arguments in March. Anna Moneymaker/Bloomberg via Getty Images hide caption

Student demonstrators cheered in 2015 outside the Supreme Court after learning that the high court had upheld the Affordable Care Act as law of the land. But Republican foes of the federal health law are still working to have it struck down. Jacquelyn Martin/AP hide caption

Families affected by preexisting medical conditions attend a Capitol Hill news conference in 2018 in support of the Affordable Care Act. Prior to the ACA, insurers could refuse to cover people who had even mild preexisting conditions — or charge them much more. Andrew Harnik/AP hide caption

Presidential candidates recognize health care is a key voting concern. But polled Democrats don't yet agree on the best solution. Toni L. Sandys/The Washington Post/Getty Images hide caption

A demonstrator celebrated outside the U.S. Supreme Court in 2015 after the court voted to uphold key tax subsidies that are part of the Affordable Care Act. But federal taxes and other measures designed to pay for the health care the ACA provides have not fared as well. Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images hide caption

Brelahn Wyatt, a Navy ensign and second-year medical student, shares a hug with Shetland. The dog's military commission does not entitle him to salutes. Julie Rovner/KHN hide caption

The "Cadillac tax," an enacted but not yet implemented part of the Affordable Care Act, is a 40% tax on the most generous employer-provided health insurance plans — those that cost more than $11,200 per year for an individual policy or $30,150 for family coverage. Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg Creative/Getty Images hide caption

Opponents running to Joe Biden's left say his health plan for America merely "tinkers around the edges" of the Affordable Care Act. But a close read reveals some initiatives in Biden's plan that are so expansive they might have trouble passing even a Congress held by Democrats. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption

Demonstrators from Doctors for America marched in support of the Affordable Care Act outside the U.S. Supreme Court in March 2015. Now, another case aims to undo the federal health law: Texas v. United States could land in front of the Supreme Court ahead of the 2020 election. Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images hide caption

Abortion-rights activists gathered for a news conference in New York City Monday to protest the Trump administration's proposed restrictions on family planning providers. The rule would force any medical provider receiving federal assistance to refuse to promote, refer for, perform or support abortion as a method of family planning. Spencer Platt/Getty Images hide caption

Demonstrators in favor of and against abortion rights made their beliefs known during a January 2018 protest in Washington, D.C. Alex Wong/Getty Images hide caption

Philadelphia demonstrators protested earlier moves by Republicans to repeal the Affordable Care Act last February. If the ACA is indeed axed as unconstitutional, health policy analysts say, millions of people could lose health coverage, and many aspects of Medicare and Medicaid would change dramatically. Bastiaan Slabbers/NurPhoto via Getty Images hide caption

"Democrats call it 'Medicare-for-all' because it sounds good, but in reality, it actually ends Medicare in its current form," Speaker of the House Paul Ryan asserted in a speech at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 8. Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images hide caption

Nationally gathered statistics suggest that nearly half of graduating physicians in 2017 owed more than $200,000 in student debt. Cargo/Getty Images hide caption

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (from left), Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh and Vice President Pence met on Capitol Hill Tuesday, ahead of meetings with Republican senators. Democrats vow to challenge Kavanaugh's nomination in upcoming hearings. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images hide caption

Activists outside the Supreme Court in January voiced their support for abortion rights nationwide. Alex Wong/Getty Images hide caption

In his new job overseeing health coverage for 1.2 million workers and their families, Atul Gawande says he hopes to find specific ways to make health care more efficient and the solutions exportable. Dan Bayer/The Aspen Institute via Flickr hide caption

Charlie Wood of Charlottesville, Va., plays with bubbles during a May 4, 2017, rally near the Capitol to oppose proposed changes to the Affordable Care Act. Charlie was born a few months prematurely, and her mother, Rebecca (left), fears changes to the health law will negatively affect her care. Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call Inc. hide caption