Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Election 2008

Republican Presidential Candidate Giuliani To Announce Tax Credit Proposal To Help U.S. Residents Purchase Individual Health Insurance

      Presidential candidate and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) on Tuesday in Rochester, N.H., plans to announce a proposal that would provide U.S. families with tax credits of as much as $15,000 to purchase individual health insurance policies, the Wall Street Journal reports (Harwood, Wall Street Journal, 7/31).

Under the proposal, any "leftover funds could be rolled over year to year for medical expenses," the AP/Boston Globe reports (Elliott, AP/Boston Globe, 7/30). The proposal also would provide low-income residents with subsidies to help purchase individual health insurance policies (Gordon, Long Island Newsday, 7/31).

Giuliani did not estimate the cost of the proposal but said, "I don't think the plan would cost a great deal" or require additional revenue after a "short transition period." However, some observers maintain that "providing substantial assistance to large numbers of people who can't afford individual policies would be expensive," the Journal reports.

According to Giuliani, the proposal would increase the number of residents who have individual health insurance policies to more than 30 million, compared with the current 17 million, a shift that would allow health insurers to reduce the prices of such policies (Wall Street Journal, 7/31). Giuliani did not estimate the number of uninsured residents that the proposal would cover. He said that, rather than implement "socialized medicine," the proposal would address problems with the health care system "by relying on American principles, not Cuban and European principles like the Democrats want to do" (Long Island Newsday, 7/31).

Criticism
Presidential candidate and former Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.) criticized the proposal. In a statement, he said, "Rudy Giuliani's tinkering does not come close to solving the problems of a broken health care system that leaves 45 million uninsured or tens of millions facing financial ruin because of inadequate insurance" (AP/Boston Globe, 7/30).