Written by A.J. Plunkett
While the Federal Election Commission records show that almost 300 people already have declared their candidacy for president in 2012, these nine Republicans, along with President Barack Obama, a Democrat, are the most widely considered as this year’s frontrunners. Here are their positions on health care, according to their official websites.
Of the Republican candidates, most oppose, in part or in whole, the Affordable Care Act passed by Congress and signed into law by President Obama in early 2010.
Michele Bachmann
Republican, Minnesota
MICHELEBACHMANN.COM
Bachmann’s No. 1 priority is “to repeal Obamacare,” which she says may lead employers to drop health plans for their workers and add “$1 trillion or more to Obamacare’s cost.” She believes the act will eliminate 800,000 jobs, and is an unconstitutional infringement on freedom. She says Medicare faces $25 trillion in unfunded obligations and needs to be stabilized. To that end she says she voted for the Ryan Plan “to make sure that Medicare is secure for future generations.” If elected, she says she will work to “unleash the power of medical innovation and personal choices,” push for greater competition in the health care market and work to empower “your families and doctors, not unelected bureaucrats, to make the right decisions about the shape and form of your health insurance, your quality of care and your course of treatment.”
Republican, Georgia
NEWT.ORG
Gingrich wants to repeal the “left’s big government health bill” and proposes instead a 13-point “Patient Power” plan. Among other things, it would offer the choice of a “generous tax credit” or a limited tax deduction on the purchase of health insurance. To increase industry competition, Gingrich proposes offering citizens the ability to purchase health insurance in other states, and to give seniors on Medicare the option to choose “a more personal system in the private sector with greater options for better care.” Medicaid reforms would include creating a block-grant program similar to the welfare reform of 1996, which would give states “more freedom and flexibility to customize their programs to suit their needs.” Those who are uninsured or who “become too sick to buy health insurance” would be covered by a high-risk pool set up by each state.
Jon Huntsman
Republican, Utah
JON2012.com
Huntsman wants to repeal the 2010 health care reforms and points to his record in spearheading legislation for free-market health care reform while governor of Utah. Those reforms included an exchange that allows Utah residents a convenient way to purchase insurance coverage. Huntsman’s website quotes the New York Times as comparing the ease of the exchange with “downloading music from iTunes.
Gary Johnson
Republican, New Mexico
GaryJohnson2012.com
Touting his record of eliminating budget deficits and cutting the growth of state government as governor of New Mexico, Johnson says government “should not be in the health care business. Like all industries, health care would benefit from a free-market approach providing the best product and services at the best price.”
Ron Paul
Republican, Texas
ronpaul2012.com
A medical doctor, Paul wants to put citizens in control of their own health care decisions by allowing them to purchase health care across state lines, and aims to provide tax credits and deductions for all medical expenses. He seeks to exempt those with terminal illnesses from paying payroll taxes while ill or incurring significant medical costs. He invisions a payroll deduction to workers who are primary caregivers to a spouse, parent or child with a terminal illness. Among other ideas: reduce malpractice litigation fairly, guarantee that Medicare and Medicaid are “not raided for other purposes,” and stop the FDA and the FTC from “interfering with Americans’ knowledge of and access to dietary supplements and alternative treatments.”
Rick Perry
Republican, Texas
rickperry.org
Perry says reform should concentrate on Medicare’s sustainability, address fraud and waste, and “empower individuals to make choices that best fit their needs in a competitive marketplace.” He seeks to raise the age of Medicare eligibility, adjust benefits on a sliding scale based on income, and give Medicare recipients more control “through bundled premium support payments directly to the individual or as a credit against the purchase of health insurance coverage offered through the program.” He wants to return responsibility for “achieving the original goals of Medicaid to the states using the 1996 welfare reform law as a model.”
Mitt Romney
Republican, Massachusetts
mittromney.com
Romney says that he will on his first day in office issue an executive order “paving the way for waivers from Obamacare for all 50 states.” He supports market-based reforms that “empower states and individuals and reduce health care costs.” He advocates allowing states to block-grant funds for Medicaid and the uninsured. He seeks to expand the tax code to provide individual deductions for the purchase of insurance. He says federal regulation of health care should be limited and focused and supports allowing the purchase of insurance across state lines, and individuals and small business to form purchasing pools. He also would cap non-economic damages in medical malpractice litigation and provide “innovation grants to states for additional medical liability reforms.”
Buddy Roemer
Republican, Louisiana
buddyroemer.com
Saying health care reform under President Obama fell victim to special interests, Roemer says he is “unwilling to accept campaign contributions that would keep him from being free to lead” on health care reform. He also says any health care renovations should include tort reform. Roemer says he would “eliminate Obamacare, but keep insurance coverage of preexisting conditions.” He says individuals should be allowed to buy polices across state lines, eliminating “pocket monopolies” and increasing market competition. He promotes exposing drug companies to competition to lower prices, and offering incentives to providers to reduce costs.
Rick Santorum
Republican, Pennsylvania
ricksantorum.com
Santorum has praised the federal judge in Pennsylvania who ruled that the provision of the Affordable Care Act that required individuals to purchase health insurance was unconstitutional. He supports reforms for Medicare to make it sustainable, and the use of block-grant funding for states to run their Medicaid programs. He vowes to use his prerogatives under the Executive Branch to ban federal funding of embryonic stem cell research, repeal the “Obamacare mandate for contraceptive services” in health care plans, restore “conscience clause protections for health care workers,” and veto any “bill or budget that funds abortion or funds any organization that performs abortions.”
Barack Obama
barackobama.com
Obama touts the Affordable Care Act as an end to insurance company abuses—including denying coverage to people with pre-existing conditions or cancelling coverage when someone gets sick.” He says the act makes health care more affordable for families and small businesses, and will allow 95 percent of Americans younger than the age of 65 to have insurance. His election website notes that insurance companies can no longer deny coverage to children with medical conditions, and must justify rate hikes. Consumers also have the ability to appeal to an independent third party when insurance companies refuse to cover services or care.