Former Vice President Joe Biden’s campaign is rolling out a new digital advertisement in Iowa focused on health care, which he continues to make a signature issue of his candidacy.
“When it comes to family, it’s being there that counts,” the narrator says. “Because every moment matters. And every family deserves to have good healthcare from day one. So let’s build on Obamacare and finish the job.”
The 15-second ad, called “Family,” is running on YouTube. It is part of the campaign’s six-figure advertising campaign on television and digital platforms in Iowa.
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Here’s the ad that was released Tuesday morning:
According to data from the media tracking firm Advertising Analytics, Biden’s campaign has spent $686,573 on television advertisements in the Hawkeye State. The Biden campaign says “Family” is designed to complement the health care message in other television and digital advertisements by hitting voters multiple times a day.
While the ad will reach voters across Iowa, the campaign says it will specifically focus on new parents, and it will target voters who are engaging with products designed for newborns.
Most of the advertisement features home pictures and videos, which the campaign gathered from supporters. It shows families spending time together and newborn babies in the hospital before closing with a shot of Biden hugging former President Obama.
Biden has been the frontrunner in the Democratic primary since entering the race. In the most recent CBS News Battleground Tracker poll, 29% of registered Iowa voters who are Democrats said Biden is their top choice for the nomination, followed by Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders with 26% and Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren with 17%.
Health care is the top issue for Democrats in Iowa, with 89% saying the issue is “very important,” according to a July CBS News poll. In that poll, 66% of Iowa Democrats said they preferred a national health insurance plan that competes with private insurance, while 34% preferred eliminating private insurance.
Biden has drawn sharp contrasts with Sanders and Warren on healthcare by saying that Democrats should build on the Affordable Care Act rather than pushing for a “Medicare for All” system that eliminates private insurance.
“I know that the senator says she’s for Bernie, well, I’m for Barack,” Biden said during the third Democratic debate, referring to Warren and Sanders’ shared stance on Medicare for All. “I think the Obamacare worked. I think the way — we add to it, replace everything that’s been cut, add a public option, guarantee that everyone will be able to have affordable insurance.”
