Candidates are listed in alphabetical order. Positions are categorized as Pro (Yes), Con (No), Not Clearly Pro or Con, or None Found.
Candidates who have withdrawn or who no longer meet our criteria are listed last.

Pro (Yes)

Con (No)

Clinton, Hillary (D) - Pro Hillary Clinton, U.S. Senator (D-NY), in an article titled "HEALTH CARE: Remarks on American Health Choices Plan" on her official candidate website (accessed Oct. 30, 2007), stated: "...[T]oday, as we strive for a new beginning to the 21st century, I believe everyone, every man, woman and child, should have quality, affordable health care in America... Under my plan, large companies will be required to help pay for their employees' health care. Those that do so can simply maintain their current policy that they choose. Those that don't, will need to contribute towards the cost of covering their employees on a sliding scale based on their size and average wages... Now, under my plan, we won't require small businesses to cover employees. Instead we will provide tax credits to ensure that many of them do. These tax credits will be based on size and average wages, so that small businesses can provide health care without destroying their bottom line... Government also needs to do its part to promote shared responsibility. Under my plan, the government will provide tax-credits to insure that every single American can afford health insurance." Oct. 30, 2007 Hillary Clinton

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Gravel, Mike (Lib) - Pro Mike Gravel, former U.S. Senator (D-AK), issued the following statement through his press secretary, Alex Colvin, in an Oct. 19, 2007 email to ProCon.org: "Health care is a right, not a privilege. My plan, called the Healthcare Security System, creates a truly universal health care program where an annual certificate is issued to each American to cover his or her basic health care costs." Oct. 19, 2007 Mike Gravel

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		Keyes, Alan (Ind) - Con Alan Keyes, former Assistant U.S. Secretary of State, stated in the Sep. 17, 2007 Republican Presidential Debate in Fort Lauderdale, FL: "Q: Will you protect the availability of needed medical care by opposing current efforts to subject Americans to government-mandated health insurance and universal coverage?... [Alan] Keyes: Yes." Sep. 17, 2007 Alan Keyes

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McCain, John (R) - Con John McCain, U.S. Senator (R-AZ), stated in the Oct. 21, 2007 Republican Debate in Orlando, Florida, hosted by Fox News: "First of all, I think it is important that that will be one of the defining issues of this campaign, because we know that there will be Hillary-care resurrected. There will be efforts to raise your taxes. There will be efforts to have a single-payer big government solution by the Democrats. They've already espoused those causes. If you believe them, please take a trip to Canada or England before you decide to support such a thing. America has the highest quality health care in the world. Our job is to preserve it. Our job is to keep the costs down. Last year, the Medicaid inflation was 10 percent. No, no program in the world can survive under that. So of course we want to remove the employer (OOTC:EPLI) tax, and tax incentives, and move it to the individual. Give the individual a $2,500 refundable tax credit, a family a $5,000 tax credit. If you need to have people in special categories such as congenital diseases, we may have to set up a fund to care for those. But the key is, make health care in America affordable and available. Don't destroy it, as the Democrats want to do." Oct. 21, 2007 John McCain

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McKinney, Cynthia (Grn) - Pro Cynthia McKinney, former U.S. House Representative (D-GA), stated in her May 1, 2007 Green Party Presidential Candidate Questionnaire: "In Congress, I was a cosponsor of every bill to create a national system for universal access to health care under a single payer model." May 1, 2007 Cynthia McKinney

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Nader, Ralph (Ind) - Pro Ralph Nader, attorney, author, and political activist, stated in a July 9, 2007 interview with Amy Goodman of Democracy Now!: "Amy Goodman: I want to end with healthcare, I think one of the critical issues of the day that is so rarely explained. If there was a healthcare system in this country that you designed, what would it look like? Ralph Nader: Well, it would look like full Medicare for everybody, whereby the government is the payer." July 9, 2007 Ralph Nader

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Obama, Barack (D) - Pro Barack Obama, U.S. Senator (D-IL), stated in a May 29, 2007 article titled "Cutting Costs and Covering America: A 21st Century Health Care System" on his official candidate website: "...I also believe that every American has the right to affordable health care. I believe that the millions of Americans who can't take their children to a doctor when they get sick have that right... My plan begins by covering every American. If you already have health insurance, the only thing that will change for you under this plan is the amount of money you will spend on premiums. That will be less... If you are one of the 45 million Americans who don't have health insurance, you will have it after this plan becomes law... If you cannot afford this insurance, you will receive a subsidy to pay for it... To help pay for this, we will ask all but the smallest businesses who don't make a meaningful contribution today to the health coverage of their employees to do so by supporting this new plan. And we will allow the temporary Bush tax cut for the wealthiest Americans to expire." May 29, 2007 Barack Obama

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Paul, Ron (R) - Con Ron Paul, U.S. Representative (R-TX), in the Oct. 21, 2007 Republican Debate in Orlando, Florida, hosted by Fox News, stated: "Well, we've had managed care, now, for about 35 years. It's not working, and nobody's happy with it. Nobody seems to be happy -- except the corporations, the drug companies and the HMOs. You take care of poor people by turning the medical care back into the system, where people have some choices. Now, we have a mess because we have -- a lot of people are very dependent on health care. But I have the only way we can afford to take care of people now, because we're going broke, with $500 billion going to debt every single year. And we have a foreign policy that is draining us. I say, take care of these poor people. I'm not against that. But save the money someplace. The only place available for us to save it is to change our attitude about running a world empire and bankrupting this country. We can take care of the poor people, save money and actually cut some of our deficit. So you don't have to throw anybody out in the street, but long term you have move toward the marketplace. You cannot expect socialized medicine of the Hillary brand to work. And you can't expect the managed care system that we have today, which promotes and benefits and rewards the corporations -- because it's the drug companies and the HMOs and even the AMA that comes to us and lobbies us for this managed care, and that's why the prices are high. It's only in medicine that technology has raised prices rather than lowering prices." Oct. 21, 2007 Ron Paul

CANDIDATES WHO HAVE WITHDRAWN OR NO LONGER MEET OUR CRITERIA       Biden, Joe (D) - Not Clearly Pro or Con Joe Biden, U.S. Senator (D-DE), stated in an article titled "Health Care: Four Practical Steps Toward Health Care For All" on his official candidate website (accessed Nov. 2, 2007): "The path to universal health care starts with making sure that the most vulnerable, our children, have health insurance [by] [e]xpanding the State Children's Health Insurance Program [SCHIP] to at least 300 percent of the federal poverty level... While insuring all children must be our top priority, it is also important to offer uninsured adults access to health care...Senator Biden would allow uninsured Americans to buy into an insurance program that mirrors the Federal Employee Health Benefit Plan (FEHBP)... Small businesses would be allowed to participate in the program to help provide insurance for their employees." Nov. 2, 2007 Joe Biden Top      Brownback, Sam (R) - None Found   Withdrew on Oct. 19, 2007; no position found as of that date Top    Dodd, Chris (D) - Pro Chris Dodd, U.S. Senator (D-CT), stated in an article titled "Health Care for All: The Dodd Plan" on his official candidate website (accessed Nov. 1, 2007): "The Dodd plan will create a health insurance marketplace called the Universal HealthMart that is based on, and parallel to, the Federal Employees Health Benefits Plan (FEHBP). Individuals and businesses will pay for coverage within Universal HealthMart based on their ability to pay. If a person or business is unable to pay for insurance, the government will subsidize their premium share on a sliding scale based on income. Universal HealthMart will offer a variety of comprehensive plans and entitle every American to the same benefits and types of plans as Members of Congress." Nov. 1, 2007 Chris Dodd Top    Edwards, John (D) - Pro John Edwards, former U.S. Senator (D-NC), stated at the Microsoft/National Broadcasting Corporation's (MSNBC) South Carolina 2007 Democratic Primary Debate on Apr. 26, 2007: "Q: Which taxes would you raise to pay for health care? A: I would get rid of Bush's tax cuts for people who make over $200,000 a year. My universal health care plan would require employers to cover all their employees or pay into a fund that covers the cracks in the health care system--mental health parity; chronic care; preventative care; long-term care; subsidized health care costs. Give people a choice, including a government choice. And require that every single American be covered." Apr. 26, 2007 John Edwards Top      Gilmore, Jim (R) - None Found   Withdrew on Aug. 14, 2007; no position found as of that date Top    Giuliani, Rudy (R) - Con Rudy Giuliani, former Mayor of New York City, in the Aug. 5, 2007 Republican Iowa Debate hosted by ABC News, stated: "The bill [S.2029 sponsored by Sen. Chuck Grassley] had two very unfortunate parts to it. One, it would reduce Medicaid Advantage, which is a very, very successful program that actually does bring about some form of a free- market solution. And second, it would have the really odd effect of moving children who presently have private insurance to becoming wards of the state, basically having them move in the direction of -- and I know the Democrats get all upset when you say this, but they're taking us toward socialized medicine. If we want the kind of results they have in England or France or Canada or Cuba, like Michael Moore wants us to do, then we should go in that direction. But that would be a terrible thing to do. What we should do is increase the number of people who have private insurance. In order to do that, we should give them a major tax deduction, $15,000, let them have a health savings account as part of that. They'll have an incentive to own their own health insurance. That's the thing that's wrong with the market here. It is not really good to move this thing in terms of more government control of health care." Aug. 5, 2007 Rudy Giuliani Top    Huckabee, Mike (R) - Con Mike Huckabee, former Governor of Arkansas, stated in an article titled "Issues: Health Care" on his official campaign website (accessed Oct. 30, 2007): "We don't need universal health care mandated by federal edict or funded through ever-higher taxes... I advocate policies that will encourage the private sector to seek innovative ways to bring down costs and improve the free market for health care services... It is time to recognize that jobs don't need health insurance, people do, and to ease the burden on our businesses. Our employer-based system has outlived its usefulness, but the answer is a consumer-based system, not socialized medicine." Oct. 30, 2007 Mike Huckabee Top    Hunter, Duncan (R) - Con Duncan Hunter, U.S. Representative (R-CA), in an article titled "Core Principles: Values Issues" on his official campaign website (accessed Nov. 5, 2007), stated: "Since World War II, when employer sponsored health care became a more widely offered employee benefit, spending has increased from 5% of GNP to 16% today. Systematically, the eye of the health care consumer has been removed from the market place. Whether it is employers offering a single insurance option or the government making health care choices on behalf of the elderly and the poor, consumers have been increasingly removed from the market place. The result has been a system with costs increasing at rates that are neither sustainable nor practical. The solution is freedom for the consumer to pursue their own health care choices. Therefore, I propose three major reforms that will bring the consumer back into the health care equation: 1. freedom to buy health insurance across state lines; 2. freedom to make informed health care choices; and 3. freedom to innovate to save money and improve medical outcomes." Nov. 5, 2007 Duncan Hunter Top    Imperato, Daniel (3rd/I) - Pro Daniel Imperato, an Independent candidate and business entrepreneur, stated on his official candidate website (accessed Nov. 26, 2007): "Healthcare programs obtained through employment, are earned by the employee, and working men and women have the right to make their own healthcare choices... Public Assistance for those who are unable to provide for their own healthcare." Nov. 26, 2007 Daniel Imperato Top    Kubby, Steve (3rd/I) - Con Steve Kubby, founder of the American Medical Marijuana Association, stated in an Oct. 29, 2007 email to ProCon.org: "The question isn't 'should,' it's 'do.' A right is something to which one is entitled, and it exists independently of any government statement or policy saying it does ... and no, there can't be a 'right' to something that someone else has to provide. A 'right' to healthcare amounts, in essence, to conscription of doctors, nurses and other medical personnel. I oppose the draft for any purpose." Oct. 29, 2007 Steve Kubby Top    Kucinich, Dennis (D) - Pro Dennis Kucinich, U.S. Representative (D-OH), in the Mar. 24, 2007 "New Leadership on Health Care: A Presidential Forum" at Las Vegas, Nevada, stated: "It's time we ended this thought that health care is a privilege. It is a basic right, and it's time to end this control that insurance companies have not only over health care but over our political system... We're being told here today to buy into a view of the world which says that, well, you know, but the insurance companies run the system. We'll have people, you know, we'll work out competition between the insurance companies and maybe we'll have government subsidize the insurance companies. Where is our call for greatness? What if FDR [Franklin D. Roosevelt] said, well, you know, we can't really do the New Deal?" Mar. 24, 2007 Dennis Kucinich Top    McEnulty, Frank (3rd/I) - Con Frank McEnulty, President of Our Castle Homes, in an Oct. 30, 2007 email to ProCon.org, stated: "No, because I don't believe that anyone has a 'Right' to health care. I do believe, however, that the system has to be thoroughly reviewed to determine what changes can and should be made so that all Americans have the ability to obtain basic, affordable health care in this country." Oct. 30, 2007 Frank McEnulty Top          Richardson, Bill (D) - Not Clearly Pro or Con Bill Richardson, Governor of New Mexico, stated in the Mar. 24, 2007 "New Leadership on Health Care: A Presidential Forum" at Las Vegas, Nevada: "...[T]hose that say you need to increase the tax, you need to find other sources of revenue, I believe we can do it within the existing system and cover all Americans and control costs and be fair. But an essential component of the plan that I learned is that we have to be part of it: Employers, employees, state, the federal government. It's a cooperative, collaborative relationship catalyzed by the government, making health care universal coverage something that we can do, I believe, as I said, within a year." Mar. 24, 2007 Bill Richardson Top    Romney, Mitt (R) - Con Mitt Romney, former Governor of Massachusetts, stated in the Oct. 21, 2007 Republican Debate in Orlando, Florida, hosted by FOX News: "First of all, I'm not going to give the Democratic legislature credit for the plan that I helped build. So, I want to let you know I'm very proud of what we did in Massachusetts, and I think it's a model that other states can adopt in some respects. But let me tell you something about our plan. It's different than Hillary Clinton's in a lot of important ways. But one thing that I'm happy about is that Republicans are talking about health care. This isn't a Democrat issue. It's a Republican issue. For Democrats, they want to have government take it over. And I don't want to have the guys who did the cleanup at Katrina taking responsibility for health care in this country. The right answer is to get people insured, all of our citizens insured so they don't have to worry about losing their insurance if they change jobs or have a preexisting condition. But Hillary says the federal government's going to tell you what kind of insurance, and it's all government insurance. And I say no, let the states create their own plans, and instead of government insurance, private, market-based insurance. Hillary's plan costs an extra $110 billion. My plan doesn't cost any additional money. We use the money we're already spending, we just use it a good deal more wisely. And the real question here is, are we going to talk about health care and get everybody insured with private insurance? Absolutely. Because the alternative is unthinkable. As P.J. O'Rourke said, if you think health care's expensive now, just wait until it's free. We're not going Hillary's way." Oct. 21, 2007 Mitt Romney Top    Smith, Christine (3rd/I) - Con Christine Smith, a Libertarian candidate and founder of Dreams of Freedom, Inc., stated in a Nov. 12, 2007 email to ProCon.org: "No. It has been government's intrusion into healthcare (mandates, regulation, Medicare/Medicaid, etc.) that has resulted in the enormous costs our nation experiences now. The Constitution protects our rights - period. It limits the power of government. It does not grant government the authority to provide healthcare. That, like so many other parts of lives is left in the hands of the people of a free society where liberty was cherished. Forcing one citizen (taxation) to provide services for other citizens is the opposite of liberty. People have a right to freedom - a free market in healthcare would mean incredibly lower prices and good care - not government-provided (taxpayer funded) 'healthcare.' The only solution to America's health-care crisis is to end all governmental intervention into an area where a true free market of supply and demand would result in again top care and low costs (like we once had)." Nov. 12, 2007 Christine Smith Top    Tancredo, Tom (R) - Con Tom Tancredo, U.S. Representative (R-CO), in the Oct. 21, 2007 Republican Debate in Orlando, Florida, hosted by Fox News, stated: "One of the most interesting parts of this debate about health care is the fact that we continually talk about the federal government's role in it. We should actually be debating that specific point, not what kind of government program... Really and truly, it's a fascinating thing to think about this, that we have moved all the way to the point of simply debating what kind of federal plan we might have rather than debating what's the constitutional right of the federal government to get involved in this particular issue. That's a challenge I think we all have to accept. Now, if there's a federal role, I completely accept the idea of giving people the greater opportunity -- individual opportunity to use health savings accounts. Why? Because that takes individuals. They become the consumer in the marketplace dealing directly with the provider. That's called a marketplace. That will drive down the costs. Get the federal government -- don't even talk about our responsibilities, because they always -- gives people the option to think that there is -- naturally the federal government should be involved. It shouldn't." Oct. 21, 2007 Tom Tancredo Top      Thompson, Fred (R) - Not Clearly Pro or Con Fred Thompson, former U.S. Senator (R-TN), stated in an article titled "Healthcare" on his official candidate website (accessed Oct. 23, 2007): "Every American should be able to get health insurance coverage that is affordable, fully accessible, and portable. Coverage should meet their individual needs and put them in control. Those who propose a one-size-fits-all Washington-controlled program ignore the cost, inefficiency, and inadequate care that such a system offers. Access to affordable, portable health care can be made available for all Americans without imposing new mandates or raising taxes." Oct. 23, 2007 Fred Thompson Top      Thompson, Tommy (R) - None Found   Withdrew on Sep. 12, 2007; no position found as of that date Top      Vilsack, Tom (D) - None Found   Withdrew on Feb. 23, 2007; no position found as of that date

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