White House Should Use Fall Campaigns to Promote Tax Credits for the Uninsured, Medicare Reform, Editorial Says

Given that election campaigns "provide a vehicle for introducing ideas into the public debate," the Bush administration should put forth its ideas for health care reform, such as tax credits for the uninsured and a Medicare prescription drug benefit, in the fall campaign, a Dallas Morning News editorial says. Tax credits are a "plausible suggestion" to address the issue of the 39 million uninsured people, depending on how such a credit would be structured, the editorial states. Even though recent budget figures make it "impossible" for the Bush administration to push Congress for a new tax break this year, "momentum" for the credits is growing, the editorial notes. For example, recent trade legislation approved by President Bush includes a tax credit to help trade-displaced workers retain employer-based health insurance or purchase coverage through insurance pools. By pushing the idea of tax credits during this year's congressional campaigns, Bush "would lay the groundwork [to introduce] legislation next year to alleviate a very serious problem," according to the Morning News. Regarding Medicare reform and prescription drugs, the editorial states that Bush should push the Senate to follow the House's lead and "pass legislation that adds drug coverage and starts to overhaul the system" by "giving seniors more choices with their Medicare dollars" (Dallas Morning News, 8/29).