Dem Rep. Katie Porter does not offer health insurance to campaign staffers despite calling it a 'human right'

California Democratic Rep. Katie Porter’s campaign does not offer health insurance coverage to its staffers despite calling health care a “human right,” filings show.

The congresswoman is a proponent of universal coverage and is a co-sponsor of a "Medicare-for-all" bill. She has said that "health care is a human right" and that she would stop at nothing to protect health care, improve it and expand it. Jordan Wong, communications director for Porter’s campaign, says stipends are added to employee's paychecks. "Your assumption that ‘campaign staffers [do] not receiv[e] health insurance coverage’ is not correct," Wong said. "Our campaign employees continue to receive stipends for health insurance. They are deposited with their salaries, on top of the agreed-upon compensation for their work." When asked if the stipends – which are not reported in filings – were for employees to purchase their own health insurance since it appears the campaign was not offering coverage, Wong added, "All employees, even if they are on a parent's or spouse's insurance, receive the same health insurance stipend from the campaign. For all of our employees, this has been more than enough to cover the full cost of their premium (and then some) for a Covered CA plan of their choice."