2012 U.S. House of Representatives Candidates on Healthcare
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Reid Ribble
Republican incumbent
Rep. Reid Ribble advocates repealing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and replacing it with a plan that uses the market, rather than state-run health insurance exchanges, to drive the cost of healthcare down.
However, a Ribble-supported plan would include many of the same focuses as the ACA, including: a stress on preventative care; allowing children to stay on their parents’ plan longer; physicians being rewarded for better outcomes rather than more treatment; and barring insurance companies from denying coverage for those with pre-existing conditions
“Some of it’s the same, but it’s very different in the form of how it’s administered,” said Ribble, in an interview with the Pulse. “The Affordable Care Act is administered by the state, and we’re not going to fix the problem without fixing that.”
Ribble also says that connecting patients directly with their physicians, de-coupling the relationship between employers and employees, and reforming medical malpractice law would be a priority in any healthcare reform plan he would support.
On the topic of Medicare, Ribble supports the reforms proposed in the Ryan budget, which transform Medicare into a system where seniors receive a fixed credit from the government and are responsible for buying their own insurance, but he’s willing to entertain other options.
“I think it’s a good plan, but I’m open to other plans,” said Ribble. “It doesn’t start for awhile. But it’s a good starting point so we can have a legitimate conversation about ideas.”
http://www.ribbleforcongress.com
Jamie Wall
Democratic candidate
Jamie Wall supports the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), citing the provisions that require insurance companies to cover those with pre-existing conditions, the close of the Medicare prescription drug coverage “donut hole”, and the ability of children to stay on their parents’ insurance until they turn 26 as specific benefits of the bill.
“Another benefit of the law is that health insurance companies are now required to spend 80 percent of the premiums that they receive on delivering health care,” Wall said in an email to the Pulse. “As a result, a lot of Wisconsin families and small businesses actually got rebates from their health insurance companies this year.”
But despite his support for the PPACA, Wall says some changes should be made to the law.
“I have heard firsthand about the paperwork burden it will place on small businesses. Congress needs to fix this,” said Wall.
Wall said allowing Medicare to transform from a government-sponsored insurance plan into a system that subsidizes private insurance purchases, as it would under vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan’s proposed federal budget, would place too much of the cost of healthcare on senior citizens who can’t afford it.
“We need to get our fiscal house in order, but we should not start by cutting Medicare and Medicaid,” said Wall. “By working together and using common sense, Congress can protect taxpayers without drastic cuts in benefits to seniors.”