In a presidential campaign cycle unusually light on health care proposals, Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday unveiled an ambitious — and expensive — Medicare strategy that would introduce a new category of coverage for home health care.

The proposal would involve Medicare paying for home health aides to assist older Americans with daily tasks such as eating and using the bathroom. It amounted to a last-minute bet by the Harris campaign that major domestic policy reforms could break through to undecided voters.

It was also a sign of Medicare’s growing power in American life. Enrollment has steadily risen over the past decade, with nearly 70 million people in the program, many of them in private Medicare Advantage plans. That has made the program a rich target for presidential candidates seeking to appeal to older voters and their family members.

— The New York Times