McCain's health care scolded

Republican presidential candidate John McCain's health care plan was the target of harsh criticism from Elizabeth Edwards at a Wednesday round table discussion in Carrboro.

Edwards a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress Action Fund and the wife of former presidential hopeful John Edwards hosted a panel of state legislators medical officials and patients at Piedmont Health Clinic to discuss McCain's health care plan.

She declined to comment on Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama's plan.

She said McCain's plan which would make providing health insurance a federal responsibility rather than the employer's" could deprive many people of their health insurance policies.

""One hundred and sixty million people depend on their employers for health insurance" 4.5 million alone in North Carolina" she said. What he suggests will cause an enormous amount of disruption.""

Under McCain's plan" by 2013 families would pay $800 more a year for health insurance and the costs would increase from there Edwards said.

Representative Verla Insko D-Orange said some businesses already struggle to provide health care" and McCain's plan would only worsen those problems.

""Forty to 50 percent of small businesses don't provide health insurance for their employees because they can't afford it" Insko said.

Edwards also said McCain's plan to allow insurance companies to do business across state lines would increase health care costs nationwide.

There's nothing to stop insurance companies from relocating to states with more profit-friendly laws" she said.

Medical officials at the forum expressed concern for patients, who may not have adequate insurance.

Carl Taylor, director of pharmacy services and community relations at the clinic, said McCain's plan fails to address the 47 million uninsured patients that community health centers treat.

Community health centers are the only hope of a lot of people" and almost 80 percent of patients are under the protection of either Medicare or Medicaid" he said.

Dr. David Tempest, the clinic's interim medical director, said the health insurance system is complicated enough, and the complexity of McCain's plan would leave more people uninsured.

Without a good system — with a complicated system — people don't get insurance coverage" and people die prematurely" Tempest said.

Ida Fikes, a Piedmont Health Clinic patient, said she came to the state with no job, no health coverage and no money for medication.

The difference in having health insurance or not is the difference between whether you can take care of yourself or not.""



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