Excellent Comparison on McCain v Obama Health Care Reform Plans (hint McCain=DE-REGULATION)

[mod mom]

The Partisan Divide — The McCain and Obama Plans for U.S. Health Care Reform
Jonathan Oberlander, Ph.D.


In the face of escalating costs, uneven quality of care, and the growth of the uninsured population, there is broad agreement that the U.S. health care system requires reform. However, Democrats and Republicans remain sharply divided over how to reform it, as evidenced by the health care plans offered by the parties' presidential candidates. The ambitious reform agendas of Senators John McCain (R-AZ) and Barack Obama (D-IL) would take the U.S. health care system in very different directions.

McCain's plan embraces market forces and promotes individually purchased insurance (see red box). Its centerpiece is a change in the tax treatment of health insurance. Currently, workers do not pay taxes on health insurance premiums paid by their employers. The McCain plan would eliminate this tax exclusion and use the revenue generated — projected to be $3.6 trillion over 10 years — to pay for refundable tax credits for Americans obtaining private insurance ($2,500 for individuals, $5,000 for families). Uninsured Americans could use their credits to help buy insurance coverage on the individual market, and workers with employer-sponsored insurance could use theirs to offset the cost of paying taxes on their employers' premium contributions or to purchase coverage on their own.



The McCain campaign emphasizes key advantages of this approach. First, the current tax exclusion disproportionately benefits higher-income Americans, since its value depends on a worker's tax bracket.1 Providing an equal credit to all Americans is a fairer allocation of federal revenues, and since the credit is refundable, even those who do not pay taxes would qualify for federal payments. Second, the tax exclusion benefits only persons with employer-sponsored insurance, whereas under the McCain plan everyone, including the unemployed and workers whose employers do not offer coverage, would receive a credit to purchase insurance regardless of where they obtained it.

In terms of cost control, the McCain plan offers several initiatives aimed at spurring competition and changing the status quo in health insurance and medical practice. It would deregulate the insurance market to allow insurers to sell policies across state lines; residents of states that extensively regulate insurance (for example, by mandating covered benefits) would be able to shop nationwide for less comprehensive, less costly health insurance policies than those available in their home states.

-snip

http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/359/8/781#T1



Key Elements of McCain's Plan for Health Care Reform

http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/359/8/781/T1



Key Elements of Obama's Plan for Health Care Reform:

http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/359/8/781/T2


Comparing The Plans

McCain: He would replace the current tax-free status of health insurance coverage provided by employers with refundable tax credits worth $2,500 for individuals and $5,000 for families to help purchase insurance. McCain would allow the sale of insurance policies across state lines, rather than state by state, as is currently the case.

Obama: He would create a new plan for those who lack other access to coverage, as well as a National Health Insurance Exchange to help pool the purchasing power of small businesses and individuals. Obama would also offer a combination of subsidies and tax credits to help make coverage more affordable. He would mandate health insurance coverage for children, but not adults. Obama would create a federally sponsored health insurance plan, similar to Medicare, that would compete with private plans for those under age 65.

Terry Gross Interview with Dr. Oberlander for Fresh Air:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=93975730

I found this to be very informative!

[Crunchy Frog]

1. Kick.

This is informative and important.

[mod mom]

2. Agree I thought the Terry Gross interview was worth a full listen-imho.

[azmouse]

3. kick

Good info and needs to be read by everyone.