In broader pieces on the economy and taxes, two newspapers recently addressed parts of the health care proposals of presumptive Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) and presumptive Democratic nominee Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.). Summaries appear below.
- Los Angeles Times: The Times examined how, as the "faltering economy has catapulted to the top of the presidential campaign agenda," McCain and Obama "have both said they want to make health care more affordable" and accessible, but they "have laid out far different paths to achieving these goals." According to the Times, Obama "is calling for government to do more to address the nation's ills," and "McCain is embracing the traditional GOP faith in free-market solutions," a difference that "gives voters a stark choice." The Obama proposal "leans hard on government action to make insurance more affordable and, ultimately, universally available," and the plan would "make coverage mandatory for children, expand federal subsidies for the uninsured and impose new funding requirements on employers," the Times reports. In contrast, "McCain, in his health plan, shuns that infusion of government money and authority" and "instead would rely on market competition to drive down costs," through the establishment of "new tax incentives for individuals to get their own health insurance" and by reducing the "incentives for people to get insurance through their employers," according to the Times (Hook, Los Angeles Times, 6/15).
- San Francisco Chronicle: The Chronicle examines how Obama and McCain "offer voters a stark if orthodox choice on the economy" and health care. The current "economic situation ... may leave orthodox remedies outdated," as "escalating health care spending for an aging population will pitch the next president into choices not nearly as palatable as either candidate's campaign promises imply," according to the Chronicle. According to the Chronicle, the tax increases that Obama has proposed "would raise $700 billion over a decade," but "that may not cover Obama's other still-vague economic plans, such as expanding health insurance to everyone who needs it." In contrast, McCain has proposed tax reductions that would "reduce revenue by $600 billion over 10 years," a plan that "ignores the government's voracious need for taxes to pay for government health care programs," the Chronicle reports (Lochhead, San Francisco Chronicle, 6/15).
Editorials
Summaries of two recent editorials related to health care in the presidential election appear below.
- Los Angeles Times: Obama and McCain, despite the current economic downturn and federal budget deficit, "aren't even paying lip service to curbing the deficit" or the cost of entitlement programs, according to a Times editorial. Both "men's campaigns have laid out strategies for addressing the budget problems," but those proposals are "just not that credible," as economists "agree that the rising costs of debt service and entitlements -- particularly retiree benefits and health insurance for the poor -- are at the heart of the problem and that they'll become completely unmanageable within a few decades if left unchecked," the editorial states. According to the editorial, "in the time-honored tradition of presidential campaigns, neither McCain nor Obama has called for curbs on Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid," and both have "made dubious assertions that health care reform would also slow entitlement spending" (Los Angeles Times, 6/15).
- St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Obama "didn't come to St. Louis to walk the fault line in modern medicine," but "that's essentially what happened" when he visited with heart patients at Barnes-Jewish Hospital last week, according to a Post-Dispatch editorial. The editorial states, "One of those problems" of the "incredible technological prowess of modern medicine" is cost, which was "at the center of Mr. Obama's public remarks and of the Republican response," the editorial continues. According to the editorial, Obama "touted his voluntary national health insurance plan that he said would make care more accessible and affordable to millions of middle-class Americans," a proposal that McCain has "criticized ... as expensive and unwieldy." The editorial states, "Insurance works best when it allows the greatest number of people to pool their risks," which is "why a national health insurance program like Medicare makes sense," but "Obama's plan falls short of that" because the proposal "wouldn't provide universal coverage." However, "his idea of widening the insurance pool and protecting the growing number of families who face economic disaster should serious illness strike is a big step in the right direction," the editorial concludes (St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 6/15).
Opinion Pieces
Summaries of several recent opinion pieces related to health care in the presidential election appear below.