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WINTER 2007 / V1N3
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CONNECTIONS / MEDIA MALL And the Winner Is? Some 47 million Americans live without health insurance, and many of those with insurance struggle to pay premiums and out-of-pocket costs. This makes it no surprise that the No. 1 domestic issue on the minds of voters in relation to next year’s election is healthcare, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation poll. For the American Cancer Society, uninsured Americans also top the list of issues, with the oldest cancer organization committing its entire advertising budget to keeping the topic in the public eye. The ACS joins AARP, the Business Roundtable, Service Workers International, and heart, diabetes and Alzheimer’s groups to press candidates to offer solutions. Heal has assembled a collection of online resources to shed light on the healthcare debate and candidates’ approaches to the health insurance quandary. Check out www.allhealth.org and download “Health Care Coverage in America” (under “publications” on the toolbar, click on “other publications” and scroll down) for a clear explanation of the current healthcare system and the alternatives being offered. The material comes from the Alliance for Health Reform, a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank that focuses on healthcare. For quotes directly from the candidates about healthcare, see The New York Times website at www.nytimes.com/ref/us/politics/HEALTH_POSITIONS_2.html. To see where the candidates stand on all the issues, check The Washington Post at http://projects.washingtonpost.com/2008-presidential-candidates/. Find out which industries fund which candidate at www.opensecrets.org, a website run by the nonpartisan, nonprofit Center for Responsive Politics, which researches campaign spending and its effect on elections. (Under “Who Gets” on the toolbar, go to “Presidential Data.”) This provides totals raised by each candidate so far. To find out which candidates have received the most from which industry, click on the category “Selected Industries” on the left. The Kaiser Family Foundation offers a detailed discussion with each candidate about healthcare reform. Go to http://presidentialforums.health08.org/. Analysis and updates of candidates’ positions on healthcare can be found at www.health08.org. The voting records of each candidate can be found at www.ontheissues.org (click on “2008 race”). Candidates / Position / Healthcare Views / Healthcare Link Here are some highlights of the 2008 presidential candidates’ positions on healthcare: Joe Biden [DemocratIc senator from Delaware] Expand health insurance, particularly for kids, and catastrophic insurance for everyone; create electronic records. www.joebiden.com/issues/ Hillary Rodham Clinton [DemocratIc senator from New York] Create universal healthcare via universal health insurance; modernize healthcare infrastructure; revise medical malpractice system; create large insurance pools for citizens to buy into; focus on prevention. www.hillaryclinton.com/issues/healthcare/ Chris Dodd [DemocratIc senator from Connecticut] Create universal healthcare subsidized by government and businesses; focus on prevention; extend Medicaid coverage; create electronic medical records. www.chrisdodd.com/issues/healthcare John Edwards [Former Democratic senator from North Carolina] Supports universal healthcare; require businesses to offer/finance insurance; create tax credits; expand Medicaid; reform insurance laws. http://johnedwards.com/issues/health-care/ Rudy Giuliani [Former Republican mayor of New York City] Use a market-based healthcare model; make private insurance affordable through tax deductions; “make like home/car insurance.” www.joinrudy2008.com/index.php?section=2 Mike Gravel [Former Democratic senator from Alaska] Create universal healthcare voucher program, with federal vouchers given to each American based on projected needs; the ability to choose own doctor; no “insurance” but all covered; slowly phase out Medicare. http://www.gravel2008.us/issues.php Mike Huckabee [former Republican governor of Arkansas] Reform medical liability; adopt electronic medical records; expand health savings accounts to everyone; make insurance portable; make insurance tax deductible; market-based healthcare; focus on prevention. www.mikehuckabee.com/index.cfm?FuseAction=Issues.View&Issue_id=8 Duncan Hunter [Republican representative from California] Use a market-based healthcare model; opposes government-subsidized universal healthcare. www.gohunter08.com/inner.asp?z=4 Dennis Kucinich [Democratic representative from Ohio] Use a single-payer, not-for-profit health system; emphasize prevention, including prescription drugs, dental care, mental healthcare, and alternative and complementary medicine. www.dennis4president.com/go/issues/a-healthy-nation/ John McCain [Republican senator from Arizona] Create non-mandatory affordable healthcare; expand current programs (Medicare/State Children’s Health Insurance Program, SCHIP); reform medical malpractice; create electronic records; add tax incentives for insurance. www.johnmccain.com/Informing/Issues/ Barack Obama [Democratic senator from Illinois] Create national health plan with low prices and guaranteed eligibility; create national health insurance exchange to regulate private health insurance; supports mandatory coverage for children; create electronic records; limit insurance companies’ profit margins. www.barackobama.com/issues/healthcare/ Ron Paul [Republican representative from Texas] Opposes federally mandated health insurance; use market-based healthcare; create full healthcare deductions from taxes. www.ronpaul2008.com/issues Bill Richardson [Democratic governor of New Mexico] Open up existing sources of federal insurance coverage (Medicaid, Medicare, State Children’s Health Insurance Program, SCHIP); create refundable tax credit based on income; pass Medical Borrower’s Fairness Act for immediate relief to families who borrow money to pay for healthcare; require everyone to get government and business-subsidized insurance; focus on prevention. www.richardsonforpresident.com/issues/healthcare Mitt Romney [Republican former governor of Massachusetts] Extend insurance to everyone via market reforms; use state-maintained, market-based healthcare model; require insurance for all; eliminate Medicare in favor of a totally private system. www.mittromney.com/Issue-Watch/Health_Care Tom Tancredo [Republican representative from Colorado] Use tort reform and immigration enforcement to lower costs; create association health plans to group small businesses for lower insurance rates; introduce a federal program for the uninsured, possibly with federal incentives/limited subsidies; use a market-based healthcare model. Fred Thompson [Former Republican senator from Tennessee] Opposes new healthcare mandates www.fred08.com Sources include The New York Times, The Washington Post and candidate websites.
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