Kamala Harris said that the transition for millions of Americans whose private plans would be illegal under a "Medicare for all" single-payer healthcare system would be "seamless."

“It’s the same as the millions of Americans every day that transition into Medicare seniors. It's seamless," Harris said in a CNN interview that aired Wednesday when asked what would happen to 150 million Americans whose private healthcare plans would be illegal under a Medicare for All system, which she supports.

The California senator has come under fire for contradictory statements about whether she supports essentially outlawing private health insurance. Harris is a co-sponsor of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders’ Medicare for all bill, which would essentially eliminate virtually all private health insurance plans in favor of a government-run single-payer system. Plans considered "duplicative” would be illegal.

During the Democratic presidential primary debate in June, Harris raised her hand to indicate support for doing away with private insurance. The next morning, Harris said that she misinterpreted the question, thinking her hand indicated that she would put herself on a government plan rather than a private plan.

"It has to happen over a period of time," Harris said in the CNN interview. "There's no question, we would have to go from the current system into a Medicare for all system and transition into it. But the idea there would be any substantial difference in terms of the health care people receive — it's just not accurate.”





Harris argued that those who lost their private plans who transitioned to a government plan would still be able to see their own doctor. She said that while the Medicare for all bill has a four-year transition period, she expects it would take longer than that to transition to the single-payer system.

While Sanders says that the single-payer system will require a tax hike on the middle class, Harris maintains that it is possible to pay for the program without raising taxes.

"There are ways to pay for it, also understanding the investment that we are going to be making in a way that is going to reap great benefits in terms of other costs," Harris said.