Ben Carson (Health Policy)

Carson's Health Policy (section page)

Repeal and replace Affordable Care Act

"Obamacare has damaged the American health care system. Premiums have skyrocketed across the nation while people are receiving worse health care. [Carson plans] on repealing and replacing Obamacare with Health Empowerment Accounts (HEAs) that give people...control of where, how and with whom they wish to spend their health care dollars. HEAs will help to lower premiums and ensure that Americans can choose the health care providers they actually want to ensure improved health outcomes. Alongside HEAs, Americans will also have access to high deductible, catastrophic insurance that will cover regular doctor visits, as well as more challenging health circumstances." (BCWHC)

Ben Carson's HEA healthcare plan would include:

• First-dollar coverage for out-of-pocket expenses and premiums to buy the insurance of the patient's choice
• Transferable between family members (BCWHC)
• Give Medicare beneficiaries a fixed contribution to purchase the health insurance of their preference (BCWHC)
• Increase the eligibility age for Medicare by 2 months each year until it reaches age 70 (BCWHC)
• Give Medicaid beneficiaries Health Empowerment Accounts (HEA) to provide first-dollar coverage, supplemented by a major medical insurance plan of the patient’s choice (BCWHC)
• Fix Medicaid by providing fixed-dollar support to the states, which must use the funds for premium payments and HEAs for beneficiaries (BCWHC)

Veteran Healthcare

• "Our Veterans deserve the best health care we can offer. The health care neglect that many of our Veterans have faced is not what they earned while defending our freedom. As president, I will reform the VA and ensure that our Veterans receive the high quality health care they deserve. All Veterans should be allowed to receive health care at a hospital or with a health care provider they choose." (BCWVHC)

Vaccination proponent

"Vaccination is an important public health issue. Overall, vaccines have had a positive health impact for many Americans. It is very important to protect ourselves from serious diseases like polio that would be devastating if they returned to the United States. Effective, long-tested vaccines can prevent the spread of common diseases such as the flu and measles, while also helping to preclude future outbreaks. I have listened to concerns about the safety of vaccines, yet the comprehensive research on many longstanding vaccines reflects their safety and efficacy for most people." (BCWV)

Pro-Life, in favor of abolishing Planned Parenthood

• "As a former pediatric neurosurgeon, I have dedicated my life to saving and improving the lives of children. I am committed to protecting innocent lives, especially when they are most vulnerable. The sanctity of life is something that we must wholeheartedly promote and enforce. For far too long, we have become callous to the slaughter of innocents." (BCWPP)
• "As a society, we have allowed our sensitivities to be dulled and our disregard for the sanctity of life to grow. The very existence of such an organization as Planned Parenthood is proof of this and the recent videos that exposed them confirm that trend. In our country, we need to invest in better care for women, instead of providing federal funding to a corrupt organization that has been involved in abhorent practices." (BCWPP)