Although he has largely rebuked pronouncements he made in the past in favor of a single-payer system, Trump has suggested at various points in the campaign that the government will be able to guarantee universal coverage, claims that rival Ted Cruz has targeted in attack ads to portray Trump as a threat to free market conservatism.

Trump has insisted both that individuals should not be required to buy insurance and that insurers can be made to provide coverage to those with preexisting conditions. When challenged on that point at a Republican debate last month, Trump said that "the insurance companies can pay. Right now they're making a fortune."

Two positions that Trump has consistently maintained throughout his campaign is that he will not cut Medicare or Medicaid, both of which Republicans in recent years have said have to be pared down.

Like other Republicans, however, Trump has said he would favor turning Medicaid into a block grant program for states. And he has proposed allowing insurers to sell policies across state lines, a policy that conservative policy wonks have been pushing for years.

He has also proposed a tax deduction for health care premiums, an idea that some experts point out would not do much for the poorest Americans, who do not pay much in federal income taxes.

So far in the 2016 campaign for the GOP nomination, health care has not been as prominent an issue as in the past. Polls show that 37 percent of Republican voters classify health care as a "very important" issue, less than the number who say the same about terrorism, the economy, and government spending. Among Democrats, 43 percent call health care very important, making it the party's top issue.

According the the Wall Street Journal, the gender gap may also be an indicator of which way voters will sway come voting time. 35 percent of registered female independent voters say health care is "extremely important" to their vote, with independent male voters polling at 26 percent.

44 percent of Repbulican women agreed, as did 28 percent of Republican men. For women, health care is seen as a prime issue, and one that will certainly garner their attention in the coming months. 

In contrast to the 2012 election, which preceded the implementation of the PPACA, the 2016 GOP race has largely been focused on terrorism, immigration and the myriad personal attacks between Trump and his opponents. Whichever Republican emerges as the party nominee will face a challenge in promising to both repeal the PPACA and maintain the coverage that it has extended to millions.