Newsline: November 2004
Health Plan Reforms Proposed by Kerry Still a Priority of Labor
 The election may be over, but the health plan advanced by Sen. John Kerry during his campaign is still very much a top priority for the labor movement. With American workers rating health coverage at or near the top of the list of issues needing immediate government attention,
a new analysis shows that Kerry’s health care proposal would increase the number of insured and lower private health insurance costs.
Sponsored by the AFL-CIO and conducted by Emory University’s Dr. Kenneth E. Thorpe, the analysis focused on Kerry’s proposal for a federal stop-loss health care pool.
The pool reduces health plan risk by reducing variance in health claims and ensuring greater cost predictability for businesses and plans. The overall plan would produce an estimated net benefit to employers of $26.6 billion per year.
“Senator Kerry’s plan aggressively addresses skyrocketing health costs, the number one problem facing U.S. health care,” Thorpe said. “It takes pressure off both employer-provided health benefits and public programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid, while greatly expanding coverage to the currently uninsured while lowering
health cost inflation.”
Thorpe’s analysis also reveals that Kerry’s plan has the potential to extend coverage to 26.7 million currently uninsured Americans.
“It is indisputable that America’s working families are suffering a health care crisis, with nearly 82 million people — fully one of every three younger than age 65 — lacking
health care coverage for all or part of 2002 and 2003,” said AFL-CIO President John Sweeney.
“This analysis verifies that thoughtful, creative approaches can generate immediate benefit to employers and employees, while cutting public expenditures. We believe
that Senator Kerry has the right plan, the vision and the wherewithal to bring quality, affordable health insurance to America’s working families,” Sweeney said.
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