Kerry vs. Edwards - the disabled and health care

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It's now Kerry vs. Edwards for the 2004 Democratic Nomination.

Let's compare where these two gentlemen stand on issues affecting the disabled community...

Right away, one can see John Kerry is reaching out to the disabled community. He has established a "community" on his website focused on issues relating to disabled Americans. Edwards doesn't even have an issue paper written on issues specifically relating to the disabled. Therefore, I have to pick and poke around all over Edwards website to find his positions on these issues.

On health care, Kerry has detailed information on his proposals affecting disabled Americans. From that page...

" High quality, accessible, and affordable health care should be a right for every American, and is especially important for people with disabilities. John Kerry's plan will:

(1) PROTECT AND STRENGHTHEN MEDICAID. John Kerry is firmly opposed to the Bush Administration's proposals to slowly but surely defund and turn Medicaid into a block grant to the states. Kerry's plan gives states money to invest in Medicaid, so that the health and independence of more than 10 million children, adults and older Americans with disabilities throughout our country can improve.

(2) PASS THE FAMILY OPPORTUNITY ACT. No parent should have to turn down a job or give up the custody of a child to ensure that the child gets health care. In a recent survey of 20 states, 64 percent of parents with children with disabilities reported that they turned down jobs, raises, and overtime pay to remain under the income limits required to qualify for Medicaid coverage. John Kerry strongly supports the Family Opportunity Act, which gives states the option to expand Medicaid coverage for children with disabilities up to age 18 in families with incomes up to 250 percent of the federal poverty level (or $46,000 per year for a family of four). It also grants immediate access to Medicaid services for those children with disabilities who are presumed eligible for SSI.

(3) FULLY IMPLEMENT THE OLMSTEAD DECISION. People with disabilities and older Americans must receive the support they need to live in their own homes and communities. John Kerry believes that states must be given increased resources and tools to carry out the Olmstead decision and must be held accountable for doing so.

(4) ENSURE REAL PRESCRIPTION DRUG COVERAGE UNDER MEDICARE. The prescription drug plan that just passed is less about prescription drug benefits and more a prescription to benefit big drug companies. John Kerry's plan will lower prescription drug costs, make sure seniors and people with disabilities on Medicare can choose their doctors instead of forcing them to join an HMO, ensure beneficiaries can get quality wrap around services through Medigap, and ensure that there is always a Medicare-run plan with a guaranteed premium in every area.

(5) ENACT MiCASSA AND THE MONEY FOLLOWS THE PERSON ACT. Americans with disabilities must be assured equal access to quality home and community living services. John Kerry is an original cosponsor of MiCASSA and the Money Follows the Person Act. Passage of both of these bills is vital to ending the institutional bias that makes it impossible for millions of Americans to exercise the most basic of human liberties: freedom, choice, and independence. Kerry supports increasing funding for independent living centers, areas agencies on aging and similar local organizations to build capacity and support people with disabilities in moving out of or keeping from needlessly going into a nursing home or another institution. John Kerry will work to provide decent wages and benefits to the community based services workers who help make independence possible.

(6) ADOPT A COMMUNITY FIRST POLICY IN AMERICA. There is an institutional bias that must be reversed to ensure that Americans with disabilities of every age have the services and supports to live in the community of their choice. To do this, John Kerry will appoint a national bipartisan Community First Commission made up of Members of Congress, Governors, distinguished older Americans, veterans, Americans with disabilities and other experts. The commission will identify short and long term policy reforms that could and should be pursued to:

Guarantee that all Americans with disabilities who can live in their community with affordable supports have equal opportunity to do so regardless of age, disability, State of residence, employment status or form of assistance required.
Create a greater federal role in equitably financing and enhancing the quality and appropriateness of all long-term services.
Eliminate the institutional bias in Medicaid and Medicare that robs millions of Americans of their most basic freedoms, dignity and daily independence.
The commission will submit findings and recommendations to the Kerry Administration and the leadership in both houses of Congress by July 26, 2005 - the 15th anniversary of the ADA.

(7) ENHANCE MEDICARE. The federal government has a critical role to play to assure that workers with disabilities have the insurance coverage they need to be as independent and productive as possible. John Kerry believes we should enhance coverage for employed beneficiaries with disabilities. He will work to eliminate the two-year waiting period to become eligible for Medicare and expand coverage for certain other competitively employed individuals with disabilities. John Kerry would also modernize Medicare benefits to include inpatient and community rehabilitation services, community transition services, mental health parity, durable medical equipment, and skilled home health service. He will direct HHS to fund a series of demonstrations aimed at identifying cost effective ways that best promote the health, independence and productivity of people with disabilities and to improve upon the permanent risk adjustment payment system to promote better health care.

(8) ENSURE MENTAL HEALTH PARITY. John Kerry believes we need to require full mental health parity once and for all. Not just mental health parity for certain benefits or certain mental health conditions or with unnecessary loopholes that allow insurers to skirt their responsibility. He will fight to pass full mental health parity legislation."

http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/awd/healthcare.html

Edwards health care proposals are family and children focused. Disabled children will find proposals to make health care available and affordable for all those under 21 as well as requiring that those under 25 be allow to continue to buy into parent's coverage. He will expand the ability of working adults to enter the CHiP program and those older than 55 will be allowed more insurance purchasing options and also will be allowed to buy into Medicare. There are also proposals for seniors to recieve an unspecified prescription drug benefit added to Medicare. Details at these links...

http://www.johnedwards2004.com/healthcare.asp

http://www.johnedwards2004.com/seniors.asp


What stands out in all this is the the complete absense of even a mention of disabled adults that rely on Medicare for health care coverage. Is Edwards going to apply the same proposals to the disabled he is offering to seniors? Is he planning on saving money by not including the disabled? I can't tell you from what is presented on the Edwards website. The reason I don't automatically assume that Edwards plans to offer the disabled the same plan as seniors is because of Edwards discussion of creating what he calls a "Health Care Safety Net" that focuses on community health clinics and public hospitals. This is more commonly know as a two-tier health care system. Long lines and lack of choice to the impoverished, and a seperate, standard insurance-paid system in the upper tear for those who can afford quality insurance. Here's more on that proposal...

http://www.johnedwards2004.com/healthcare-safety-net.asp

Personally, I'm far more comfortable with Kerry's concrete proposals instead of trying to guess which aspect of Edwards proposal is intended to be delivered to disabled Americans. Kerry has made a clear effort to speak directly to the disabled community instead of leaving our concerns off the page and guessing as Edwards has.

http://disabled.democratsblog.com/3

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