ELECTION 2008

Democratic Presidential Candidate Richardson Unveils Universal Health Care Plan That Would Expand Preventive Coverage

Presidential candidate New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson (D) on Tuesday announced a proposal that would extend health insurance to the 45 million U.S. residents who lack coverage and would not require a tax increase, the Washington Post reports. Under the proposal, all residents would have to obtain health insurance (MacGillis, Washington Post, August 8). The proposal would:

• Allow residents ages 55 to 64 to pay to participate in Medicare, expand Medicaid and SCHIP to include more low-income children and families and allow young adults to continue to receive health insurance through the policies of their parents until age 25;
  
  
• Provide tax credits on a sliding income scale to help residents purchase health insurance (Glover, AP/Houston Chronicle, August 7);
  
  
• Allow residents and small businesses to purchase the same health insurance offered to members of Congress and the president;
  
  
• Mandate that health insurers no longer can deny coverage to residents with pre-existing medical conditions;
  
  
• Provide veterans with a "Heroes Health Card" that would expand their access to health care;
  
  
• Require employers to pay a share of health insurance costs for employees;
  
  
• Limit interest rates applied to health care costs charged to credit cards;
  
  
• Allow the federal government to negotiate prices directly with pharmaceutical companies under the Medicare prescription drug benefit (Petroski, Des Moines Register, August 8);
  
  
• Establish incentives for preventive care programs; and
  
  
• Improve health care efficiency though increased use of technology and other measures (AP/Houston Chronicle, August 7).

Richardson said that the proposal would cost an estimated $110 billion annually but that savings from the plan would cover the cost (Washington Post, August 8).

He said, "Despite Republican hand-wringing about the cost of universal care, it is clear that the cost of doing something -- in lives and dollars -- pales in comparison to the cost of doing nothing" (Des Moines Register, August 8). Richardson added, "My plan does not build a new bureaucracy. The last thing we need between patients and doctors is another sticky web of red tape" (AP/Houston Chronicle, August 7).