GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Former Vice President Joe Biden's first stop Monday was at Cherry Health in downtown Grand Rapids, a nonprofit healthcare facility that is a Federally Qualified Health Center funded by a branch of the federal government.
This was one of four campaign stops Biden is making in Michigan on the eve of the Democratic presidential primary in the state. While Biden is hosting a Get out the Vote rally Monday night in Detroit, this West Michigan event was closed to the public.
Held at Michigan's largest community health facility, Biden hammered home his message on healthcare, which is one of the biggest issues in this election. The CEO for Cherry Health, Tasha Blackmon, introduced the former vice president, saying that when the Obama administration passed the Affordable Care Act in 2010, community health centers doubled in size.
"Like almost every community health center across the United States, we're on the front lines, providing care to those who need it most," said Blackmon. "We provide care when they have nowhere else to go, when they don't have the money to pay for their medications."
Blackmon said 57% of the population that Cherry Health serves are Medicaid beneficiaries and about 96% of their patients earn less than $52,000 for a family of four.
Biden was joined by his most prominent Michigan endorser, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, as well as other local leaders like Kent County Commissioners Robert Womack and Monica Sparks. Womack said Biden's involvement in the ACA is why he is supporting his presidential campaign.
"What Obama and Biden did with the affordable healthcare act is just something that is historic in our lifetime. I think he'll make sure it continues and that the right pieces are added so it can help even more Americans," said Womack.
The governor introduced Biden by first explaining her endorsement, then discussing why healthcare was a focus for the campaign Monday morning.
"Healthcare is personal. And that's why doing this event at Cherry Health. It's incredibly powerful. Healthcare is on this ballot," said Whitmer.
Biden's healthcare platform is primarily focused on protecting the Affordable Care Act and restoring parts of that legislation. The other front runner in the presidential primary, Sen. Bernie Sanders, is pushing for a more progressive approach to healthcare with Medicare for All--a key component of his platform.
Biden said that plan would be a "long and expensive slog."
"Patients at Cherry Hill, they can’t afford to wait for a revolution. They are looking for results, for their friends and their families today, immediately, not tomorrow," said Biden. "It doesn't mean standing still. It means offering every single American a Medicare-like public option. That's what I do. I restore Obamacare, all the cuts and add a public option, a Medicare-like option for those who want it and those who can't afford it would automatically be enrolled."
Blackmon said Cherry Health provides a range of healthcare services to over 70,000 people in Michigan; about half of their patients are children.
"I'm proud to say that health centers like us offer so much more. We offer a healthcare home, a place where our patients feel like they belong, a place where they feel welcome," said Blackmon.
Biden said he was going to tour the facility after the press conference. From there, he is making another campaign stop in Flint before heading to Detroit for the rally. Over the weekend, his campaign fanned out across the state with multiple events featuring Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar and John Kerry.
Sanders has also made his presence known in Michigan in the final days before the primary. He held four rallies across the state, including one in Grand Rapids that drew a crowd of over 7,600 people to Calder Plaza on Sunday.
Both Sanders and Biden are competing for Michigan's 125 delegates that are on the table in Tuesday's primary. The Detroit Free Press published a poll Monday saying that Biden is leading Sanders by more than 20 points. Even with that solid lead, both candidates are still working to secure voters since Sanders beat Hillary Clinton in 2016 when she had a similar lead going into election day.
The Michigan presidential primary is on March 10.
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