Speakers at the rally ripped McCain’s “market-driven” health care proposals, seizing on one in particular: the Arizona senator’s call for eliminating the tax exemptions on employer-paid health benefits and replacing them with tax credits for health care expenditures.
Critics of the proposal say employers would cite the tax credits as a reason for dropping their employees’ health care coverage, even though the tax credits – $2,500 for individuals and $5,000 for families – would cover less than half of current health insurance premiums.
Pat McCann, president of the American Postal Workers Union’s St. Paul local, labeled the proposal insulting.
“McCain’s proposed new tax on health care benefits would take money out of the pockets of middle-class families at a time when they are struggling just to hold on,” McCann said. “He’d also cut the tax advantages employers now get for providing health benefits. And you know what that would mean: No more benefits on the job.
“Instead, he’d push everyone into the private insurance market on the theory that, somehow, the competition would reduce the cost. We’ve all seen how well that works.”
At a candidate forum on health care last October, McCain used a famous Ronald Reagan quote to sum up his approach to the issue.
“‘Nobody ever washed a rental car,’” McCain quipped. “If you’re getting (health care) for free, then obviously your sense of responsibility is very different than if it’s something that you can go out and choose your health insurance policy.”
Later in the forum, McCain argued that taxing health benefits would force Americans with “gold-plated health insurance” policies to “start making different decisions about the extent of coverage of their health insurance plan.”
But David Wehde, state director of AFL-CIO community affiliate Working America, said McCain is out of touch with the decisions real working families face when it comes to health care.
“Even our members who have coverage tell us that they are worried about losing it or keeping up with costs,” Wehde said. “Taxing their benefits would only hurt their economic situation even worse. Shouldn’t we be working to make things better for working families?”
McCain’s approach to Medicare and Medicaid, the labor activists said, is no better.
McCain has repeatedly voted to cut billions of dollars from both health care programs. He supported raising the age at which seniors become eligible for Medicare benefits, and he supported increasing seniors’ Medicare premiums.
“Our members want to see change,” Wehde said. “Already this year, over 9,000 of our Minnesota members have spoken out by taking part in our national petition for quality, affordable health care for all Americans.
“I’m here today to say that we must fight for policies that help, not continue to hurt, working people. Let’s turn around America and fight for real health care reform that works for working families.”
Michael Moore is the editor of the Saint Paul Union Advocate
Share
Speakers at the rally ripped McCain’s “market-driven” health care proposals, seizing on one in particular: the Arizona senator’s call for eliminating the tax exemptions on employer-paid health benefits and replacing them with tax credits for health care expenditures.
Critics of the proposal say employers would cite the tax credits as a reason for dropping their employees’ health care coverage, even though the tax credits – $2,500 for individuals and $5,000 for families – would cover less than half of current health insurance premiums.
Pat McCann, president of the American Postal Workers Union’s St. Paul local, labeled the proposal insulting.
“McCain’s proposed new tax on health care benefits would take money out of the pockets of middle-class families at a time when they are struggling just to hold on,” McCann said. “He’d also cut the tax advantages employers now get for providing health benefits. And you know what that would mean: No more benefits on the job.
“Instead, he’d push everyone into the private insurance market on the theory that, somehow, the competition would reduce the cost. We’ve all seen how well that works.”
At a candidate forum on health care last October, McCain used a famous Ronald Reagan quote to sum up his approach to the issue.
“‘Nobody ever washed a rental car,’” McCain quipped. “If you’re getting (health care) for free, then obviously your sense of responsibility is very different than if it’s something that you can go out and choose your health insurance policy.”
Later in the forum, McCain argued that taxing health benefits would force Americans with “gold-plated health insurance” policies to “start making different decisions about the extent of coverage of their health insurance plan.”
But David Wehde, state director of AFL-CIO community affiliate Working America, said McCain is out of touch with the decisions real working families face when it comes to health care.
“Even our members who have coverage tell us that they are worried about losing it or keeping up with costs,” Wehde said. “Taxing their benefits would only hurt their economic situation even worse. Shouldn’t we be working to make things better for working families?”
McCain’s approach to Medicare and Medicaid, the labor activists said, is no better.
McCain has repeatedly voted to cut billions of dollars from both health care programs. He supported raising the age at which seniors become eligible for Medicare benefits, and he supported increasing seniors’ Medicare premiums.
“Our members want to see change,” Wehde said. “Already this year, over 9,000 of our Minnesota members have spoken out by taking part in our national petition for quality, affordable health care for all Americans.
“I’m here today to say that we must fight for policies that help, not continue to hurt, working people. Let’s turn around America and fight for real health care reform that works for working families.”
Michael Moore is the editor of the Saint Paul Union Advocate