Oklahoma: U.S. Senate

Candidates

Brad Carson, Democrat
Tom Coburn, Republican

Issues: Social Security | Affordable Health Care | Prescription Drug Costs | Long Term Care |

The issue boxes contained on this page are not clickable online. Please print the page and make notes for your reference.

Question

Do you support or oppose replacing part of Social Security with private individual accounts?

AARP Response

AARP strongly opposes replacing ANY part of Social Security with private individual accounts. Social Security is not in crisis. Without any changes in current law, Social Security can pay 100% of benefits until 2042. But private individual accounts funded with Social Security dollars mean Social Security would face financial problems sooner.

"Personal control" sounds appealing. But substituting private individual accounts, even for part of Social Security, drains money from Social Security, which means less money to pay guaranteed benefits.

Creating these private individual accounts requires trading today's inflation-protected lifetime guaranteed benefit for an account subject to market risk and not guaranteed to last a lifetime.

Inflation, market turns, or sudden loss of employment can also mean that your private individual account may not have enough money to provide an adequate benefit. AARP supports options that help Americans save for their retirement through individual accounts on top of Social Security; but opposes replacing any part of Social Security's guaranteed benefit.

Issue	Yes	No	Unclear
Supports creating private individual accounts out of Social Security

Candidate Response: Brad Carson

Brad Carson believes we must protect Social Security from any attempts to privatize it. Social Security is a great American success story, which has drastically reduced the number of seniors living in poverty, and Brad Carson has vowed to fight to protect it for future generations.

Candidate Response: Tom Coburn

I support allowing Americans to invest a portion of their Social Security taxes while preserving and guaranteeing existing benefits for current and near retirees.

While I do not believe anyone should be forced to invest a portion of their Social Security taxes into personal accounts, the fact is that most Americans would be better off for their retirement if their taxes had been put in a savings account at the local bank and allowed to accrue interest. Today, part of the Social Security taxes that are collected each year are used to pay out benefits, the remainder-- about $180 billion a year-- is used by politicians to pay for other government spending. These funds are replaced with paper IOUs. If individuals were allowed to control their own personal accounts, politicians would have to quit stealing from Social Security and individuals would be able to save even more for their retirement.

Question

In the face of escalating costs, how would you reform the health care system to make it available, affordable and accessible for every American?

AARP Response

AARP supports measures to achieve access to affordable health care coverage for all individuals, an approach that would address the needs of those without public or private insurance or those at risk of losing coverage.

In the absence of universal coverage, AARP supports incremental reforms that significantly improve coverage options for those without public or private insurance or those at risk of losing coverage.

These reforms include:

• Opening existing public programs (for example Medicaid, Medicare) to new categories of people who are uninsured
• Encouraging employers to offer and expand coverage
• Subsidizing the cost of private coverage for those who are uninsured, underinsured or at risk of losing coverage
• Expanding the continuation of group health care coverage at group rates to persons whose access is ending (for example expanding COBRA coverage).

Issue	Yes	No	Unclear
Supports employer incentives
Supports expanding public programs





Candidate Response: Brad Carson

With costs skyrocketing and over 43 million Americans uninsured, reforming our healthcare system is a massive, pressing task. Brad Carson has a comprehensive plan for reforming healthcare. Some highlights include: opening up the Congressional Health Plan (FEHBP) to all Americans; promoting stronger Association Health Plans; ensuring equitable coverage for mental health (in the 107th Congress Brad Carson introduced the Seniors Mental Health Access Improvement Act); expanding community health centers; insuring all children by expanding existing programs.

Issue	Yes	No	Unclear
Supports employer incentives
Supports expanding public programs





Candidate Response: Tom Coburn

First, the consumer of health care must be reconnected with the plan. Currently, most Americans receive their health insurance from their employer or from a public program. Under this scheme, most Americans can not chose their plan, they can not drop their plan, and now—as a result of a recent Supreme Court decision—they can not even hold an insurance plan accountable for denial of medically necessary care that causes harm. As a member of Congress, I wrote the law that guarantees Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries basic patients rights, including access to specialists and the right to appeal denials of care.

I support providing tax incentives to employers, small businesses owners and individuals that increase access to health insurance.

Finally, unnecessary costs that increase health care expenses but do little to improve health care quality—such as excessive government red tape and frivolous law suits—must be curtailed.

Issue	Yes	No	Unclear
Supports employer incentives
Supports expanding public programs

Question

How would you propose to reduce drug costs and close the gap in coverage for all Medicare beneficiaries?

AARP Response

Legislation adding a prescription drug benefit to Medicare became law in 2003. While this is a good first step, the benefit does not cover the drug costs between $2,250 and $5,100 for most Medicare beneficiaries. AARP supports closing the gap in coverage for all beneficiaries and believes that more must be done to bring down soaring drug prices. AARP supports the legal importation of prescription drugs beginning with Canada and allowing the Secretary of Health and Human Services to negotiate on behalf of Medicare beneficiaries if competitive purchasing doesn't work.

Issue	Yes	No	Unclear
Supports closing the coverage gap
Supports legal importation from Canada
Supports HHS secretary negotiations

Candidate Response: Brad Carson

Brad Carson voted for the Medicare prescription drug benefit because it was a start – but much remains to be done. The “donut hole” in coverage between $2,250 and $5,100 should be closed; the government should use its massive purchasing power to pursue better prices on drugs; and while Brad Carson opposes reimportation from third world countries without American standards, he believes that reimportation from countries like Canada is a viable option.

Candidate Response: Tom Coburn

As a doctor, addressing the skyrocketing costs of prescription drugs for all

Americans would be among the highest of my priorities as a Senator. Too many people cannot afford the drugs they need to stay healthy. As a result, people are forced to choose between paying for medicine or paying for other necessities, such as food.

Americans pay more for drugs because pharmaceutical companies sell drugs to other countries at lower prices. In Congress, I authored a law that would have allowed Americans to legally import drugs from other nations that have been approved for use within the United States and were manufactured in an FDA-approved facility. While this bill passed Congress, it has never been implemented. As a Senator, I will work to ensure that Americans can take advantage of this law.

I was also a co-sponsor of legislation to speed the approval of more affordable generic drugs.

Question

What do you propose to give consumers more and better options for long term care; promote better, more integrated delivery systems; expand stable financing sources for all long term care options, especially in home and community based settings; and strengthen support for family caregivers?

AARP Response

At some point, most Americans will need some help with daily activities (such as dressing or bathing). Many will also need other supportive services. Currently, the U.S. has no national policy or established system for delivering these services to Americans with long term care needs. The caregiving burden on millions of families is often overwhelming.

AARP supports measures that provide individuals' access to long term care services and assure quality - especially those services in people's homes and communities, so that fewer people need to move to institutions. These improvements can be done by:

• increasing consumer control and decision-making;
• supporting caregivers through respite care and tax credits;
• making it easier to find the services that are right for an individual's circumstances;
• building an efficient system to deliver services, whether in homes, communities, or institutions;
• increasing training and numbers of direct care staff across all settings; and
• improving coordination between medical and long-term care.

Expanding home and community-based services will reduce the cost burden to individuals and families, meet their preferences, and help prevent unnecessary institutionalization.

Issue	Yes	No	Unclear
Supports giving individuals more and better home and community based care options
Supports increased training and staffing numbers across all settings
Supports expanding stable financing sources

Candidate Response: Brad Carson

Brad Carson believes that long-term care is one of the most pressing issues in our health system today, and has taken a leading role in improving standards at nursing homes, introducing the Patient Abuse Prevention Act of 2002 to require background checks on employees and resources for better training. He helped introduce the Nursing Home Staffing Improvement Act to set mandatory minimum staffing requirements at nursing homes. He also supports tax credits to help individuals to take care of family members in their homes and to avoid having to place them in institutions, and incentives for employers and individuals to purchase private, long-term care insurance.

Candidate Response: Tom Coburn

As a physician, I believe ensuring the independence and long term care of seniors and other patients is extremely important.

Quality long term care can be achieved in a number of ways, including supporting caregivers with tax credits, making it easier to find the services that are right for an individual’s circumstances and building an efficient system to deliver services, whether in homes, communities, or institutions.

Home care is often more efficient and less expensive than institutionalization in nursing homes or hospitals. While in Congress, I authored a law to guarantee access to home health care for homebound Medicare beneficiaries in rural areas. This is extremely important for those seniors who wish to remain at home and are truly homebound.

I also support adequate funding for nursing homes and other long term care facilities to ensure residents receive quality care from trained and compassionate staff and are well treated.