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>> all month on c-span, we are featuring the winners of our studentcam documentary competitions. middle and high schools students created videos answering the question, what issue do you want -- most want the 2020 presidential candidates to address? our second prize middle school award goes to eighth graders from takoma park middle school in tacoma park, maryland. where c-span is available through comcast. their winning entry is titled "the price of life." >> health care should be a right, not a privilege in america. >> the function of a rational health-care system is to provide quality care to all. >> health care is a basic human right. ♪ >> health care has become a staple of our society. it's the reason why we don't have to worry about a scratch, a

bruise, or a scraped knee when we are playing our favorite sport. >> with everything from a life-threatening surgery to an over-the-counter prescription, health care is the governing force, our shield against all types of illnesses. as the dynamic american population shifts, so should health care. >> people are living longer now than when the country began. the life expectancy was in people's 50's. now, lots of people are in their 80's and 90's, so we clearly need to make the changes in the health care system to deal with that demographic shift toward an older population. >> so, what does america's health care system look like today? >> the good news about our health care system now as it stands is, we've got over 90% of the population covered with some form of health insurance, whether that be through their

employer -- about 55% of people through medicare program for people 65 and older, whether it be through the medicaid program, children's health insurance program, military health. there is a number of different sources where people get their coverage, and we have done a decent job with over 90% of the country covered. >> i would say the best thing about what's going on in our health care system today is that with the affordable care act, we have developed a social recognition that we need to figure out how to provide health care to every single person. >> besides the more glamorous budding side of health care and the benefits, there is a darker side, as well. >> currently in the u.s., the price of accessing the health care system is soaring to record high numbers. a 2017 report from the center for medicare and medicaid services shows that the average

american paid more than twice the per capita average for health care than any other developed nation. >> there are a lot of problems in the health care system. it is way too expensive. part of the problem is prescription drugs are way too expensive, the cost of health care generally is a problem. >> according to a recent report from the organization for economic cooperation, development, americans on average spend about $1200 on prescription drugs in a single year, which is more than what is spent in any other developed nation. >> so why are these drugs so expensive? a big factor in the cost of these drugs is the arduous task of experimentation as well as clinical trials. >> well, when you think about why drugs cost so much and why innovative drugs cost that much, it really is the fact that the drug development cost is so expensive and so risky and

unpredictable. the question about how drug prices are set is an interesting one in the united states. much of drug development is about failure. in other words, even into the human testing stage, about nine out of every 10 drugs fail. even if that one drug gets approved, it may not succeed in the market. because another drug may be better or may be used more. drug companies in the u.s. get to set the price of their drugs -- and they take all those factors into account and what people are willing to pay for it. >> although some prices for prescription drugs are high, -- ridiculously high, some patients have no choice but to foot the bill. >> these are life-saving medications. they are not optional. and people should never have to make the unthinkable decision about whether to purchase their

medication or to put food on the table or gas in their car. >> it's clear that in america, the health care system is very expensive. but what about other countries? >> we have drug companies who -- that are charging americans three or five or even 10 times as much for the same prescription drugs they are selling in other countries like canada or the u.k. or france or germany or japan, because there are price controls there. there are ways of regulating it, and we don't have anything like that. and so, the cost of prescription drugs is really through the roof for a lot of americans. >> it is clear that america has a lot to learn from these other countries, as many of them have objectively better health systems than the u.s. -- health care systems than the u.s. >> although the future of health care still remains murky and unclear, there is one thing that will remain constant -- health care will continue to act as the lifeblood of america.

>> we live in the richest nation in the history of nations. this is the greatest country on earth, and i refuse to believe that we cannot find a solution that allows every american to afford the medications they need. >> this is the first time in 51 years that prices have actually gone down for prescription drugs. that's quite an achievement. >> the first thing i am going to do, day one as president, is defend the affordable care act and the second thing is i will bring down the cost of prescription drugs. -- i will do is bring down the cost of prescription drugs. >> you can watch each winning studentcam documentary online at studentcam.org. sunday, on q&a, he has been on the frontlines as a prominent member of the white house coronavirus task force. thehen you're dealing with

interface of politics, policy, and medicine, the thing that i have found to be very effective is the consistent, be totally honest, and don't tell people things that you would think they might want to hear. tell them the truth. that is based on evidence. because even though politicians, be they in the administration or the congress, may not be happy with what you tell them because it disappoints them, they will while, itu if after a is clear to them that you are telling them the truth based on scientific evidence. announcer: we will profile dr. anthony fauci. looking at his personal life, his relationships with past residence, and his career fighting infectious diseases, the sars, h1n1, and now

global coronavirus pandemic. 8:00 p.m. eastern on sunday at c-span's q&a. our livess any of coverage to the coronavirus operate, watch at any time at c-span.org/coronavirus. from daily briefings by the president to the white house task force -- and the white house task force, to governors' ,pdates of hardest hit states and confirmed cases in the u.s. county by county, our webpages the fest and easy way to watch c-span's unfiltered coverage of this pandemic. best and easythe way to watch c-span's unfiltered coverage of this pandemic. governor cuomo talked about a model that projected 16,000 new yorkers could d