Story highlights Clinton's support for the so-called "public option" comes as Democrats finalize their party's platform in Orlando

Clinton has supported the public option for decades

Washington (CNN) Hillary Clinton on Saturday expressed support for expanding taxpayer-funded health insurance, in a nod to the desires of Bernie Sanders' supporters.

In a statement released as Democrats gather in Orlando, Florida, to finalize their party's platform, Clinton backed the so-called "public option" for states, which would expand health insurance coverage beyond the current provisions in Obamacare.

Clinton has supported the public option for decades. But she ran in the Democratic primary as a candidate who wanted to expand Obamacare and used Sanders' support for a public option against him, saying it would be too costly and run into interference from Republican governors.

"We have more work to do to finish our long fight to provide universal, quality, affordable health care to everyone in America," Clinton said in a statement released by her campaign. "Already, the Affordable Care Act has expanded coverage to 20 million Americans. As president, I will make sure Republicans never succeed in their attempts to strip away their care and that the remaining uninsured should be able to get the affordable coverage they need to stay healthy."

Clinton also called for allowing people 55 years and older to be able to enroll in Medicare. Currently, the typical age for enrollment is 65. She pledged to expand funding by $40 billion for primary care services at federally qualified health care centers.