Health Care For America Now

NEWS

Election: Your health insurance at stake - CNN

McCain and Obama have vastly different views on the future of employer-sponsored health insurance. Either one could bring big change.

FACT CHECK: McCain persists in exaggerations - Associated Press

A week from the presidential election, Republican John McCain is persisting in exaggerating and misrepresenting rival Barack Obama's tax and health-care plans.

Few Can Use State High-Risk Pool for Uninsured - Los Angeles Times

Dave Dunlap is a Kern County trucker with a failing liver. Like about 600,000 Californians, he is too sick to qualify for private insurance on the open market.

S. Florida Employers Struggle to Keep Healthcare Premiums in Check - Miami Herald

The news could be worse: With South Florida mired in a recession, many employers appear reluctant to pass too much of their rising healthcare costs along to their workers.

OPINION

Three "Inconvenient Truths" about Health Care - New England Journal of Medicine

A strong case for comprehensive reform of the U.S. health care system has been made many times. The high cost of care, the large number of uninsured people, and the rapid increase in expenditures year after year have convinced many that our system is a mess. The obstacles to reform, however, are numerous and complex and have thus far proved insurmountable. The present impasse must give way to recognition that major change will not be an option much longer: it will be a necessity. Divergent interests and values must find some common ground, and all sides must acknowledge that the status quo is no longer sustainable, given three "inconvenient truths" about health care.

Will a $5,000-tax credit be the silver bullet to solve health care? - The Health Care Blog

If Senator John McCain becomes U.S. president he plans to give each American family $5,000 to pay for health insurance premium costs in the individual market. Individuals would get $2,500 for the same use.

The True Consequences Of So-Called Consumer Driven Health Care - Think Progress

In today’s Wall Street Journal, Robert Carroll lays out the conservative philosophy for health care reform. Like Sen. John McCain, Carroll believes that the employer-insurance subsidy contributes to higher health care costs by encouraging overutlilization of care. “The subsidy encourages people to buy bigger policies that cover more, and leads to greater health-care spending,” Caroll argues.

Health Care Costs Rise, Wages Fall - AFL-CIA NOW BLOG

Anyone with health care coverage knows that costs are rising far faster than their paychecks are growing. Last month, we highlighted several reports on the topic, including Premiums vs. Paychecks, produced by Families USA. In recent days, Families USA has updated the report with its new state-specific data on health costs and wages from 2000 to 2007.