The latest meteor crossing thru the GOP presidential race firmament is Herman Cain, the Godfather of pizza.
Only in America.
As difficult as it may be, I’m actually going to attempt to take Cain seriously. Leaving aside his bizarre tax plan, one that would actually dramatically increase taxes on consumption smack dab in the middle of an economic recovery, (that’s been adequately eviscerated by others far more knowledgeable than I in the implications of tax policy) I’ll examine Cain’s rather thin health care resume and policy plans.
That said, one should note that the 9-9-9 is just an interim step in Cain’s three-step process, which concludes with a flat 30% tax on all goods and services – and no other taxes of any kind.
Cain does have a long track record on health care issues – he led the National Restaurant Association back in the early nineties and was a vocal opponent of the Clinton reform efforts. That said, his website and other public statements are long on sound bites and short on substance.
He advocates:
– treating employer and individual contributions for health insurance the same for tax purposes
– repealing the Accountable Care Act and replacing it with expanded tax credits for personal savings accounts for health care
– tort reform
– switch from the current Medicare system to some type of voucher for Medicare – how this works is uncertain as there are precious few details, but when you end payroll taxes, you end Medicare…
So what would happen with Cain as President?
Well, health care services and products and procedures and treatments would be taxed at nine percent. Yep, everything from appendectomies to pills, proctological exams, psychological counseling, and PET scans.
Next, Medicare would disappear to be replaced by some form of voucher, where people would try to by coverage from private insurers on the free market. How this would work is…uncertain. I’m not sure how many private insurers would jump at the chance to provide coverage to senior citizens with Alzheimer’s, cancer, heart disease, or osteoporosis…
What did I just write?
I should have said NO private insurers…
That’s about all we can conclude at this point. Until – or rather unless – we get more detail from the Godfather of Pizza, there’s just not enough substance to his soundbites.
Oct
14
I don’t think people realize that the new 9% sales tax is essentially a 9% tax on your net worth. Meaning, if I had savings of $100,000, I could only buy ~$91,000 worth of goods due to the new 9% federal sales tax. Hence my net worth has decreased by 9%.
I am a supporter of Mr. Cain, and of course it’s impossible to agree with every minute detail of his plan. But I am a little upset that you have go on taking a shot at his “Godfather Pizza” background. “Only in America?”….. Come on Joe, I know you’re better than that. Let me remind everyone that President Obama was a “community organizer” before going into a politically useless job as a Senator.
Cain’s ideas are more or less aligned with Republican strategies on fixing healthcare. It’s not original by any means, but neither is the idea of having healthcare controlled more and more by the Feds.
Personally, I would like the see the healthcare system managed on a more state-centered arrangement (notice I am not advocating a completely free-market system). Let the states decide how to take care of their own people and allow people to choose what system they like. The one-size fits all may or may not work on a state-level, but it certainly will not work on a federal level.
For full disclosure, I lean Libertarian, but even someone like Ron Paul is becoming to radical for my tastes. I think federal government should function to allow states to work together and overall provide security, but not get involved in people’s business where the states can do the job. Let the people have a voice in where they live.
I still enjoy your views. I didn’t want to get into a policy debate because there’s plenty of info for people read on their own on the internet and make up their own mind.
Eric – thanks for the note.
After considering his public comments, his platform, his blithe ignorance of many issues foreign, economic, and domestic there’s just no way to think Cain is in any way qualified to be President. He’s the Sarah Palin of this election cycle, except his meteoric rise is unlikely to result in a reality TV show.
Re his health policy views, I’d agree they are generally aligned with other GOP contenders’ current statements – a blind and totally ignorant belief in the free market’s ability to solve a problem that it cannot. He’s just clueless.
For example, under Cain’s policies, what insurance company is going to cover you if you have a history of cancer?
Answer – none.
Question – what are you going to do for health care if you a) lose your job and b) lose your insurance?
Answer – you’re screwed.
Question – if a small employer has insurance and an employee gets diabetes and another tests HIV positive, what’s going to happen?
Answer – insurance company cancels coverage, and employer can’t get any coverage from any other insurer.
Re asking states to do the regulation, I’m all too familiar with state regulatory bodies and staff. While many, if not most, are hard working and well intentioned, their duties have expanded while their resources have diminished, leaving them hardpressed to do the regular work they’re tasked with – much less regulate large SI employers who fall outside state regulations now.
Although I lean Libertarian, I think I’m sensible enough to acknowledge the limitiations of free market forces specifically in the realm of health insurance because of a) it’s already heavily regulated, b)costs and c) risk principles (among other complex factors). I am all in support of a comprehensive plan that mixes free-market competition and gov’t assistance, but my idealogy would prefer more free-market than gov’t controlled. If I thought Canada was great, I would’ve moved there right after college because I could. But the fact that I haven’t had a friend move to Canada yet tells me it’s not an option worth pursuing (yet). I hear about people moving to China more than to Canada. Although, I admit, I’m ignorant about China’s healthcare system.
I am willing to concede that if elected President, Cain probably won’t be able to push through much of his ideas through Congress/Senate (just like Obama has had trouble with). But I’m glad he’s finally started having people talk about and hopefully refine the 9-9-9 plan to work for most people. I am a person of simplicity, so I can relate to Cain, but I also have many Liberal friends who I debate on occasion and can understand the complexities of certain viewpoints. I would like to see Mr. Cain discuss more details about his Healthcare vision and let’s see what happens.
Also for full disclosure, the last time I voted was for Bill Clinton when I was in high school. I was never a fan of Bush or Obama.