MAINE, USA — The Biden for President campaign will be holding a virtual roundtable with Alabama Sen. Doug Jones and Maine leaders on Friday at 4 p.m.
Maine State Rep. Anne Perry (D-Calais) and Portland City Councilor will join the Alabama senator in a roundtable discussion about rural health care, and about how former Vice President Joe Biden’s health care plan would affect rural Mainers.
Jones, a Democrat, made headlines in 2017 when he defeated his Republican opponent Alabama Supreme Court judge Roy Moore in the general election for U.S. Senate.
Thibodeau has been vocal about his support for Biden and endorsed him for president in February.
Biden’s plan for health care is to expand and reinforce the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The roundtable will focus on health care and how Biden’s plan will affect rural Mainers.
Alabama and Maine have similar rural communities, Thibodeau says, so being able to talk with Jones will be interesting.
"In the age of virtual zoom meetings, you can blast in from anywhere…this may be the new normal for the foreseeable future," Thibodeau said.
The topic at hand, access to rural health care, is at the foundation of Biden's health care plan, and Maine's many rural areas are in need of help.
"Even before this crisis, many [rural hospitals] were threatened with closures...[Biden] definitely wants to build upon the successes of the ACA and specifically help rural areas."
Biden's plan seeks to not only increase access to affordable health care but to also ensure that rural hospitals, like the many in Maine, are able to remain solvent.
Jones, Perry, and Thibodeau will be taking questions from voters. Those who wish to participate can RSVP here.
