Health Care News From the Campaign Trail for the Week of June 20
Fifty-three percent of U.S. adults trust presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.) more than presumptive Republican nominee Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) to address the issue of health care, according to a recent Washington Post-ABC News poll, the Post reports.
By comparison, 33% trust McCain more than Obama to address health care.
For the poll, conducted between June 12 and 15, TNS interviewed via telephone a random sample of 1,125 adults nationwide.
The poll had a margin of sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points (Washington Post graphic, 6/17).
On Thursday, 10 female Democratic senators unveiled a "checklist for change" that addressed making health care more affordable, creating universal health care and other issues, The Hill reports. According to The Hill, the checklist is an attempt by the senators to ensure that women who previously supported Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) do not vote for McCain.
The Hill reports that the checklist did not include abortion-rights issues, but Democrats later said that abortion rights were included in the universal health care issue.
According to The Hill, the 10 senators plan to reiterate the checklist on the Senate floor, at campaign rallies and at the Democratic National Convention (Raju, The Hill, 6/17).
- McCain's "market-oriented model" for health care is "similar to the one that Mr. Bush proposed to little effect in 2007," the New York Times reports. McCain, like President Bush, is proposing to shift from an employer-based insurance market to privately purchased coverage, offset by a tax subsidy. However, McCain's proposal "is more progressive" than Bush's because it offers a refundable credit of up to $5,000 to families who purchase their own health coverage. According to the Times, experts question whether a $5,000 tax credit would be enough to cover the cost of private insurance. Experts also note that Bush's plan -- which featured a $15,000 tax deduction for families purchasing private coverage -- "was more valuable to higher-income people" (Bumiller, New York Times, 6/17).
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