Healthcare

DEBATE QUESTIONS:

1. If you were President, what would you make happen with health care? (Andrew Galant 4L) 2. Why do you disagree with your opponent's policy for health care? (Elijah McNally 4M) 3. Will your health care program be tied to employment? (Nurse Shapiro) 4. Do you think children should have to get the vaccine, like the chicken pox? (Andre Selz)

john and ctoh

Issue Overview: Average family income: $52,000 Average Health Insurance Costs: Average employee: $1,707 Amt. of uninsured Americans: All-time high, 46.6 million, 15.9%, 2005. Today: 45.7 million

Democratic and Republican presidential hopefuls propose solutions to deal with one of the most critical issues facing millions of Americans.

McCain Position: McCain Position: ***John McCain Will Develop A Strategy For Meeting The Challenge Of A Population Needing Greater Long-Term Care.

John McCain Believes The Key To Health Care Reform Is To Restore Control To The Patients Themselves. We want a system of health care in which everyone can afford and acquire the treatment and preventative care they need. Health care should be available to all and not limited by where you work or how much you make. Families should be in charge of their health care dollars and have more control over care.

Cut costs • Prescribed drugs, chronic disease, etc. (this can cost people hundreds per month) • Smoking programs • Greater use of technology (21st Century systems to help doctors practice across state lines) • Reform Medicare and Medicaid for compensation payments

There have been a variety of state-based experiments such as Cash and Counseling or The Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) that are pioneering approaches for delivering care to people in a home setting. Seniors are given a monthly stipend which they can use to hire workers and purchase care-related services and goods. They can get help managing their care by designating representatives, such as relatives or friends, to help make decisions. It also offers counseling and bookkeeping services to assist consumers in handling their programmatic responsibilities.

John McCain Will Work With States To Establish A Guaranteed Access Plan. As President, John McCain will work with governors to develop a best practice model that states can follow - a Guaranteed Access Plan or GAP - that would reflect the best experience of the states to ensure these patients have access to health coverage. One approach would establish a nonprofit corporation that would contract with insurers to cover patients who have been denied insurance and could join with other state plans to enlarge pools and lower overhead costs. There would be reasonable limits on premiums, and assistance would be available for Americans below a certain income level.

Obama Position: Would create a national health insurance program for individuals who do not have employer-provided health care and who do not qualify for other existing federal programs. Does not mandate individual coverage for all Americans, but requires coverage for all children. Allows individuals below age 25 to be covered through their parents' plans.

Allows individuals to choose between the new public insurance program and private insurance plans that meet certain coverage standards.Plan would expand eligibility for Medicaid and State's Children's Health Insurance Program.

Obama estimates the cost at between $50 billion and $65 billion, to be paid for by eliminating Bush tax cuts for those earning over $250,000.

Obama Web site states: "Employers that do not offer or make a meaningful contribution to the cost of quality health coverage for their employees will be required to contribute a percentage of payroll toward the costs of the national plan."

Proposes investing $10 billion a year during the next five years to implement standards-based electronic health information systems, which would include electronic health records.


 * Healthcare is covered for children and anyone under 18 years old
 * Portable health insurance: keeping healthcare after you lose a job
 * "National Health Insurance Exchange": make private insurance more affordable for those who want it
 * Require employers to contribute to their employees heathcare

http://www.webmd.com/election2008/cp-barack-obama