Rand Paul presidential campaign, 2016/Healthcare
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 Rand Paul |
U.S. Senator (Assumed office: 2011) |
 Republican candidate: |
2028 • 2024 • 2020 • 2016 |
This page was current as of the 2016 election.
- Rand Paul voted in favor of a Senate bill to repeal large portions of the Affordable Care Act on December 3, 2015.[2]
| Wolf Blitzer of CNN interviews Paul in February 2014 on Obamacare. |
- When asked in January 2015 what would happen if the Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as Obamacare, were repealed, Paul answered, "We could try freedom for a while. We had it for a long time. That's where you sell something and I agree to buy it because I like it. That is how we operate in most of rest of the marketplace other than health care. Now the president has said you can only buy certain types of health care that I approve of, and anything I don't approve of, you are not allowed to purchase. We could try freedom. I think it might work. It works everywhere else."[3]
- Prior to entering public service, Paul was an ophthalmologist for 18 years. On his presidential campaign website, Paul wrote, "As a doctor, I have had firsthand experience with the immense problems facing health care in the United States. Prior to the implementation of Obamacare, our health care system was over-regulated and in need of serious market reforms—but Obamacare is not the answer." Paul added, "I was not a member of the United States Senate during the 111th Congress, but if I had been I would have voted against Obamacare. As your President, one of my first acts would be to repeal the abomination that is Obamacare."[4][5]
- Paul described alternatives to healthcare on his Senate website. Paul wrote, "Government interventions in health care have driven up the cost of coverage. I have long supported making all medical expenses tax deductible, allowing insurance to be bought across state lines, tort reform (state-level), and empowering all citizens to save for health expenses by removing the high-deductible insurance policy requirement to access to [sic] Health Savings Accounts."[6]
- In January 2013, Paul cosponsored S 177 - ObamaCare Repeal Act. While speaking at Harvard University's Institute of Politics, Paul later conceded in 2014 that it would be "difficult" to eliminate Obamacare now that consumers have become accustomed to it. Instead, Paul recommended making it "voluntary" and to "get rid of the coercion."[7][8]
- In 2010, Paul argued against a socialized healthcare system. Paul wrote, "Socialist medicine does not work because socialism does not work. When people blame the current crisis on the free market they are making a grave intellectual error. Simply because these large companies are benefiting does not mean we currently have a free market. When the government passes legislation, regulations, and mandates, this can hardly be called a 'free' market. It is well known that socialism leads to long lines, rationing, and a lack of choice. But more importantly, socialized medicine stifles innovation. We might not have the best coverage in this country (as a result of government intervention), but we do have the best health care. That is because we are the only country that rewards innovation on the market place. The answer therefore is more and not less freedom."[9]
- While speaking before the Center-Right Coalition in 2009, Paul suggested several methods to minimize Medicare. Paul said, "We can't just eliminate Medicare. But we have to figure out how to get more to a market-based system. It's counter-intuitive to a lot of people, but you have to pay for things if you want prices to come down. So you really need higher deductibles. And the real answer to Medicare would be a $2,000 deductible, but try selling that one in an election. But that's the real answer is, you have to pay for things. And when you do, but you also get rid of price controls. So you raise the deductible, you get rid of price controls, and you allow more competition. And you may have to allow more competition from other parties. Nurse practitioners, we already have some. Pharmacists. There have to be ways to allow medicine to come down."[10]
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See also
Footnotes
- ↑ Politico, "Rand Paul dropping out of White House race," February 3, 2016
- ↑ CBS News, "Senate passes Obamacare repeal bill," December 3, 2015
- ↑ FOX News, "Sen. Rand Paul's remedy for ObamaCare: 'We could try freedom for awhile. We had it for a long time,'" January 5, 2015
- ↑ Rand Paul, "About," accessed May 25, 2015
- ↑ Rand Paul, "Health Care," accessed May 25, 2015
- ↑ Rand Paul, United States Senator for Kentucky, "Putting Patients First," accessed May 25, 2015
- ↑ Congress.gov, "S.177 - ObamaCare Repeal Act," accessed February 10, 2015
- ↑ The Hill, "Paul: 'Difficult to turn the clock back' on O-Care," April 25, 2014
- ↑ Vote Smart, "Issue Position: Health Care," January 1, 2010
- ↑ Politifact, "Jack Conway says Rand Paul backs a $2,000 deductible for Medicare," accessed May 25, 2015
