Former President Barack Obama on Friday endorsed an idea being pushed by liberal Democrats to give everyone coverage under Medicare, calling it one of the "good new ideas" that Democrats are promoting.

"Democrats aren't just running on good old ideas like a higher minimum wage, but on good new ideas like 'Medicare for All,'" Obama said in a speech delivered in Urbana, Ill., Friday that was intended to kick off his midterm election campaigning.

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Obama endorses Medicare for all. pic.twitter.com/QCwgLj6425 — Dan Diamond (@ddiamond) September 7, 2018



An increasing number of Democrats have backed the Medicare for All Act in Congress, which was introduced by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. The bill would insure everyone in the U.S. through Medicare, the federal healthcare program that covers adults 65 and older and people with disabilities.

The bill has gained the support of 15 Democratic senators and 123 House lawmakers, and gubernatorial and House candidates have been running on the platform to secure votes in the midterm elections. Obama has not specifically endorse the most left-leaning candidates in his party, but his office has said that he would release a second round of endorsements before the Nov. 6 election.

The latest comment is a shift from Obama's policies as president, but when he was running for the Senate, he said, "I happen to be a proponent of a single-payer universal healthcare program."

During his presidential election, he endorsed a different approach that involved private health insurance companies. The bill that he backed that eventually became law, known as the Affordable Care Act or Obamacare, involved various mandates on coverage and workers, expanded the Medicaid program to low-income people, and injected government funds to cover people with private health insurance.

[Also read: Take that poll showing overwhelming support for 'Medicare for All' with a grain of salt]