Former Rep. Beto O'Rourke Beto O'RourkeJimmy Carter says his son smoked pot with Willie Nelson on White House roof O'Rourke endorses Kennedy for Senate: 'A champion for the values we're most proud of' 2020 Democrats do convention Zoom call MORE (D-Texas) said on Tuesday that it will take more than just expanding the Affordable Care Act to get Americans health insurance.

"The middle class will not pay more in taxes to ensure that every American is guaranteed world-class health care. I think we're being offered a false choice," O'Rourke said at the Democratic primary debate in Detroit.

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"Some who want to improve the Affordable Care Act at the margins, others who want a 'Medicare for All' program that will force people off of private insurance, I have a better path: Medicare for America," he continued.

O'Rourke's plan would automatically enroll Americans who do not have private insurance while permitting those with private insurance to keep it if they choose.

O'Rourke has faced pressure from the left on Medicare for All in the past, with progressives arguing that he has offered conflicting messages on the issue.

The former congressman wrote in 2017 that he supported a full-scale single-payer plan but backed off the idea when he ran for Senate in 2018, saying he supported “achieving universal health care coverage — whether it be through a single-payer system, a dual system or otherwise.”