Kentucky United States House of Representatives, District 4

Candidates:

Geoff Davis, Republican
Ken Lucas, Democrat

Questions - SOCIAL SECURITY HEALTH CARE REFORM MEDICARE LONG-TERM CARE RETIREMENT SECURITY

Social Security

A balanced Social Security plan for guaranteed benefits
	Supports	Opposes
AARP
Geoff Davis, Republican
Ken Lucas, Democrat
Using Social Security taxes for private accounts
	Supports	Opposes
AARP
Geoff Davis, Republican
Ken Lucas, Democrat

* If there is no check mark, the candidate was either undecided or chose not to check a box.

Question
Will you support or oppose a balanced Social Security plan to continue the program's guaranteed benefits for future generations? Will you support or oppose using Social Security taxes to fund private accounts?

AARP Response
For 70 years, America's families have relied on the values embodied in Social Security. The program's guaranteed, risk-free benefit protects people from outliving their savings or the loss of a spouse or parent. We all benefit from the shared responsibility of providing for today's beneficiaries, with the knowledge that that same responsibility will be met by future generations for us.

AARP believes that a bipartisan plan that balances additional contributions from higher income workers with modest adjustments in future benefits can maintain guaranteed Social Security benefits for future generations. Private accounts that drain money out of the Social Security Trust Fund would make it harder to strengthen the program and create a mountain of new federal debt for our children and grandchildren.

Candidate Response: Geoff Davis, Republican

As a child, my mother and I relied on Social Security survivor benefits after the death of my stepfather. I understand what it’s like to live on a very limited income, and I believe we must keep our promises to our seniors. We must work to ensure that the Social Security program is strong for near-term retirees and also for the next generation. I oppose privatization of Social Security. We must take a comprehensive approach to retirement security for all Americans. We must encourage savings and work to increase the national savings rate. It is important for the health of our economy that we do this without increasing payroll taxes, without raising the retirement age, and without reducing benefits.

Candidate Response: Ken Lucas, Democrat

I will support a balanced Social Security plan to continue the program’s guaranteed benefits for future generations, and I will oppose using Social Security Taxes to fund private accounts. Social Security is a major source of income for a vast majority of retirees, especially those below the poverty line. This is a fact that will not change in the future, and in Congress I will fight to ensure that this source of income is available for our future generations by opposing any type of Social Security privatization.

Health Care Reform

A shared approach to providing health care coverage
	Supports	Opposes
AARP
Geoff Davis, Republican
Ken Lucas, Democrat

* If there is no check mark, the candidate was either undecided or chose not to check a box.

Question
Will you support or oppose a shared approach involving government, employers and individuals, to providing health care coverage for everyone?

AARP Response
In the absence of universal coverage, AARP supports specific reforms that increase the number of people with health care coverage, either through public or private insurance.

More and more Americans, including a growing number of workers, find themselves without health insurance. Increasing health care costs strain businesses large and small, leading them to either stop offering health care coverage all together or raise employee premiums and co-pays. Shifting an ever-larger share of health care costs to individuals does not address the problem of the high cost of health care and threatens the health and financial security of American families.

AARP believes that government, employers and individuals should share the responsibility for paying for health care coverage.

Candidate Response: Geoff Davis, Republican

I support measures that will increase the number of Americans who have private health insurance. We should do this by providing incentives to employers to provide health plans for employees and to individuals to purchase private health insurance if no plan is offered by their employer. We should also make the cost of health insurance fully tax-deductible. I support tort reform measurers that would also help keep costs down. More private payers in the system will encourage more competition in healthcare. More competition drives down costs. I support the new Medicare Part D prescription drug benefit that is helping seniors afford their medicines. I believe Congress should continue to look at ways to make the system simpler and more efficient.

Candidate Response: Ken Lucas, Democrat

I fully support a shared approach to providing health care coverage. I know that far too many Americans are one medical emergency away from bankruptcy, and that unfairly places entire families at risk of financial disaster. A shared approach is a fair option that does not place the entire burden on one group, but instead spreads the cost out to the government, the employers and the individuals.

Medicare

Medicare negotiating to lower drug prices
	Supports	Opposes
AARP
Geoff Davis, Republican
Ken Lucas, Democrat
An annual limit on federal Medicare spending
	Supports	Opposes
AARP
Geoff Davis, Republican
Ken Lucas, Democrat

* If there is no check mark, the candidate was either undecided or chose not to check a box.

Question
Will you support or oppose allowing Medicare to use its bargaining power to negotiate lower prices for needed prescription drugs? Will you support or oppose imposing an annual limit on federal Medicare spending?

AARP Response
Medicare Part D is now helping millions of people in Medicare save money on their prescription drugs. But while those with Part D coverage are saving, the actual cost of prescription drugs continues to increase at a rate greater than general inflation. AARP believes that more must be done to bring down soaring drug costs and supports allowing Medicare to use its bargaining power to negotiate lower prescription drugs.

Proposals have been made in Congress to put an annual limit on how much money the federal government spends on the Medicare program. AARP opposes arbitrary limits on Medicare funding.

Candidate Response: Geoff Davis, Republican

I support the Medicare Part D program. I worked hard to organize workshops for my constituents and to bring in experts who could explain the details of the program. It is encouraging that polls indicate most who have signed up are happy with the program and are saving money. I agree with AARP that the government should negotiate for lower drug prices. I also believe Congress should explore other ways to lower the cost of prescription drugs. We must fund Medicare to provide needed benefits, but we must take care to guard against waste and abuse in the system as well.

Candidate Response: Ken Lucas, Democrat

I will support allowing Medicare to use its bargaining power to negotiate lower prices for needed prescription drugs. It is an outrage that we seniors must look to Canada to purchase cheaper prescription drugs. Also, I will oppose imposing an annual limit on federal Medicare spending, because why should there be an arbitrary limit on Medicare’s spending? Seniors deserve the best quality care possible, and limiting Medicare’s spending is essentially limiting our seniors’ health care options.

Long-Term Care

A combined approach to covering long-term care
	Supports	Opposes
AARP
Geoff Davis, Republican
Ken Lucas, Democrat
Requiring individuals to purchase private long-term care insurance
	Supports	Opposes
AARP
Geoff Davis, Republican
Ken Lucas, Democrat

* If there is no check mark, the candidate was either undecided or chose not to check a box.

Question
Will you support or oppose a combined approach that involves government and individuals covering long-term care? Will you support or oppose requiring individuals to buy private long-term care insurance?

AARP Response
Long-term care can be costly for people who do not have family caregivers or need more care than family and friends can provide. Qualifying for Medicaid-the primary public funding source for long-term care-requires either very low assets and income, or depleting almost all assets and income to pay for care. Currently private insurance is either too expensive or unavailable for many people. Approaches that give people cash payments to choose, buy and manage their care, along with counseling to help them make and manage care choices, help maintain dignity and maximize independence.

AARP supports a publicly funded, long-term care cash benefit program-paid for through a combination of government and individual contributions-to give people more control over their own care. AARP opposes requiring individuals to buy private long-term care insurance.

Candidate Response: Geoff Davis, Republican

I believe the government should encourage the private purchase of long-term care insurance through incentives and other means. We need to explore ways to lower the costs of such insurance to make it more affordable and accessible for more people. I oppose mandating the purchase of such insurance.

Candidate Response: Ken Lucas, Democrat

I will support a combined approach involving government and individuals covering long-term care, because long-term care is terribly expensive, and such an approach will allow dignity and independence in choice of care. I will oppose requiring individuals to buy private long-term care insurance, because such insurance is very expensive and is unaffordable for too many people.

Retirement Security

Automatic payroll deduction for IRAs
	Supports	Opposes
AARP
Geoff Davis, Republican
Ken Lucas, Democrat

* If there is no check mark, the candidate was either undecided or chose not to check a box.

Question
Do you support or oppose requiring employers to give workers access to automatic payroll deductions to fund their personal IRAs?

AARP Response
Social Security was never intended to be a worker's only source of retirement income. Even though people know Social Security will not be enough to live on, many find it difficult to save for the future. AARP supports creating and expanding supplemental retirement accounts that enable workers to accumulate retirement savings in addition to Social Security's guaranteed benefits.

AARP supports making saving for retirement simpler and fairer by requiring that employers give workers access to voluntary, automatic payroll deductions to their own IRAs if their employers do not already give them access to a pension or 401(k) plan.

Candidate Response: Geoff Davis, Republican

Congress must do more to encourage savings by providing incentives to individuals to save. Social Security was never intended to be the sole source of retirement income for American workers. To improve the quality of life for retirees in the future, we must take action to increase our national savings rate. Making saving for retirement simpler and fairer by increasing access to voluntary, automatic payroll deductions for IRAs would be one way to encourage additional savings. I support requiring mid-to-large size employers to offer this service, and I support incentives for small businesses to do so as well.

Candidate Response: Ken Lucas, Democrat

I fully support automatic payroll deduction for IRAs. Workers should have access to an easy method or extra retirement security, and such payroll deductions are an excellent answer to this problem. Social Security is too often not enough for a person to live on and IRAs provide that extra boost later in life.