Romney: Loosen rules on health insurance

By: Grant Schulte

Des Moines Register

Wednesday, Nov 21, 2007

"The federal government needs to loosen regulations on the nation's health insurance providers, increasing competition and thereby lowering patient costs, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney said Tuesday in Des Moines.

"Romney said that as president he would hand more authority to state health programs and create incentives for deregulating the insurance market. He said he would cap the amount of damages awarded in lawsuits and reform tax rules that penalize two-income households. Such policies, he said, would not raise taxes."

...

"Romney said his plan would lead to coverage for each of the nation's 47 million uninsured people within four years.

"He criticized Medicaid as 'not a very good insurance product.' He said: 'It's very good at caring for the poor, but it wasn't designed as an insurance program.'

"'The answer is not to pour government in,' he said. 'It's to get government out, and get the free market health system.'

"Romney's remarks came during a speech to a crowd of 500, mostly medical students, at Des Moines University."

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"'I very much liked his ideas,' said Clifton Peele, a first-year medical student at Des Moines University. 'It's an affordable way to provide medical coverage. It's free enterprise, but still provides coverage for everyone.'"...

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