June 28, 2007
This Month: Rudy Giuliani and John Edwards
With health care ranked as the most important issue to voters after Iraq, Hyde Park Communications will provide snapshots on the candidates' health care plans over the coming months. This issue focuses on Rudy Giuliani and John Edwards.
Rudy Giuliani: Free Market Health Care
Current Republican front-runner, Rudy Giuliani, promotes a free market approach to health care. While his full plan is expected to be released later this summer, his initial comments indicate a move from employer-based health insurance to individual insurance plans that would offer a wider variety of coverage options to consumers.
While Giuliani wouldn't do away with employer-based coverage altogether, an increase in the individual insurance coverage marketplace would be intended to expand coverage to more people who are currently uninsured, as well as reduce the burden of expensive health care costs on employers that want or need other options.
His proposed plan would manage costs through customer-owned insurance similar to the way an auto or home insurance policy operates, where the insured is responsible for choosing the level of coverage. For example, rather than using health insurance for regular health maintenance like checkups, an individual may choose a plan that they would cover only major care or emergencies.
Consumers would be able to purchase insurance from any insurer offering the services they wanted, regardless of the location of the insurer, thereby encouraging competition among insurance carriers on a national level.
John Edwards: Universal Health Care Through "Shared Responsibility"
Former North Carolina Senator John Edwards' health reform proposal focuses on providing universal coverage to all Americans. "Shared responsibility" is a core value of Edwards' plan, which calls for businesses, the government and individuals to participate in order for reformed health care to succeed.
For those who are already insured, his plan would provide less expensive coverage and make employer-provided coverage more affordable. Business would be required to provide health care coverage or other financing for employees.
Edwards' proposal would be paid through tax credits and reforming existing health insurance laws. The plan would require that all covered individuals be charged fair premiums by insurers, regardless of issues such as pre-existing conditions or age.
The plan would reduce costs by creating "health care markets" throughout the country. These markets would provide collective bargaining power to large groups of individuals and businesses within a given region, achieving economies of scale to cut the overall costs of insurance plans.
The necessary federal resources would be committed to allow states to expand Medicaid and SCHIP to serve all adults under the poverty line and all children and parents under 250 percent of the poverty line.
Edwards estimated that his health care plan could cost as much as $120 billion annually.
Health Care Reform Proposals at a Glance
Giuliani | Edwards |
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