Hillary Clinton on Wednesday said that Sen. Elizabeth Warren's (D., Mass.) Medicare for All plan would not pass the Senate.
"The smarter approach is to build on what we have," she said at a conference in New York. "A public option is something I've been in favor of for a very long time. I don't believe we should be in the midst of a big disruption while we are trying to get to 100 percent coverage and deal with costs."
When asked if she would support Warren's plan, Clinton said that she would be "very much in favor of whatever the debate was," according to Axios. Clinton added, however, that while she did not think it would pass, she believes Medicare for All is the "right goal."
"The Affordable Care Act took us to 90 percent of coverage—the highest we had ever gotten in our country after many, many efforts including one I was involved in more than 25 years ago," Clinton said, warning not to push Medicare for All too soon. "We have a 10 percent gap to fill and we have a lot of learning to do about the best way not only to fill the gap, but then to drive down costs as much as it is possible without undermining quality advancements."
Clinton, who has refused to rule out a 2020 run, is the latest among a group of centrist Democrats who have criticized Warren and her Medicare plan. Former vice president Joe Biden last week said that Warren was "making up" her numbers on how to pay for Medicare for All. South Bend, Ind., mayor Pete Buttigieg has repeatedly criticized Warren's proposal, most recently calling her plan to pay for it "controversial."
Warren claimed at the beginning of November that her plan would not raise taxes "one penny" for the middle class. Up to that point, Warren had spent months dodging questions on how she planned to pay for Medicare for All.