Consumer Affair Which health plan would you like, John McCain's or Barack Obama's
By Jimmy Downs
Oct 12, 2008 - 4:44:40 PM
If you like the article, could you please do us a favor? Just tell Google News Services that you like foodconsumer.org included in Google News Services. Inclusion in googlenewsservices means many more people can read articles like this. Thanks.
------
It's not easy for ordinary voters to understand what
really Barack Obama and John McCain have promised to offer in their health
plans when selected as President.
The Republican presidential nominee John McCain would
offer tax credits of $2,500 for an individual and $5,000 for a family. But this
credit is only available for purchasing private health insurance and would go
to insurance companies’ accounts. And no penny would go to any voter's
pocket.
The worse part of McCain’s offer is according to an
analyst that although the tax credit is supposed to help, it actually would
make it harder for low-income people to get insured. The analyst said one
family needs to pay $3,400 plus the deductible before anyone can benefit from
the health insurance plan and predicted more people would lose insurance under McCain’s
health plan.
By contrast, Barack Obama would provide subsidies for
low-income Americans to help them purchase a minimal coverage.
His plan requires all children have health
insurance, but not adult Americans. Analysts said under Obama's health plan
more Americans would actually purchase insurance.
Obama’s plan would also require any insurance
plan to cover the minimal benefits while John McCain’s would not.
A survey found more Americans think Obama's plan would give them more benefits than McCain's.