Universal health care does include plans like the ACA that are funded by making it compulsory to purchase insurance (else you pay a small $95 tax penalty to defray that cost). Conversely it requires insurance companies to provide coverage to people who want it, which is something you simply could not get before Obamacare — if you had a pre-existing condition, you might qualify for very high rates or no coverage at all. Insurance is care, because how else are you going to pay for the care? Out of pocket, astronomically?

What Bernie advocates for is another type of universal health care: single-payer health insurance — a system where there are no more private insurance companies, and the government pays for the cost of treatments directly to health providers. This is a good idea, and many people think so. The people who do not think so tend to be insurance companies and their powerful armada of money and influence. And you can’t just push through any policy or agenda you like as President, either — you have to get enough people to agree to it. And back when Hillary Clinton was trying to get what is essentially an earlier version of the ACA passed in 1993 (they called it “Hillarycare”!), it was railroaded over by the insurance industry and conservative Republicans. It was not a popular idea back then against The Establishment — and it’s still not popular (although this time “The Establishment” candidate has it on her platform, along with 12 weeks of paid medical leave to recover from serious illness). The opposing candidate promises to completely repeal universal health care.