Dick Cheney on Health Care Vice President of the United States under George W. Bush

FactCheck: Claimed $15B for AIDS-actually $2B this year

We’ve made significant progress on the AIDS epidemic

CHENEY: This is a great tragedy when you think about the enormous cost here in the US and around the world of the AIDS epidemic. Bush has been deeply concerned about it. He has moved and proposed and gotten through the Congress authorization for $15 billion to help in the international effort, to be targeted in those places where we need to do everything we can, through a combination of education as well as providing the kinds of medicines that will help people control the infection. Here in the US, we’ve made significant progress. I have not heard the numbers with respect to African- American women. We have made progress in terms of the overall rate of AIDS infection, primarily through a combination of education and public awareness as well as the development, as a result of research, of drugs that allow people to live longer lives even though they are infected - obviously we need to do more of that.

Rising malpractice insurance rates is a devastating problem

A: I’m not familiar with his cases. My concern is specifically with what’s happened to our medical care system because of rising malpractice insurance rates, because we failed to adequately reform our medical liability structure. And they were deeply concerned because they were fearful that there’d be another increase in malpractice insurance rates as a result of what they believe are frivolous lawsuits and that that would put them out of business. In Wyoming, we’ve lost the top insurer of malpractice insurance in the state. The rates for a general practitioner have gone from $40,000 a year to $100,000 a year for an insurance policy. We think this has a devastating impact on the quality of health care. High risk patients don’t get covered anymore. We’ve lost one out of eleven OB/GYN practitioners in the country. We think it can be fixed, needs to be fixed.

The Medicare reform bill will help 40 million seniors

EDWARDS: They had a choice on allowing prescription drugs into this country from Canada, of being with the American people or with the drug companies. They were with the drug companies. They had a choice on negotiating discounts in the Medicare prescription drug bill of being with the American people or with the drug companies. They were with the drug companies. They had a choice on the patients’ bill of rights, allowing people to make their own health care decisions and not having insurance companies make them, be with the American people, be with the big insurance companies. They’re with the insurance companies.

Limiting medical lawsuits keeps healthcare affordable

This is a national problem- it needs a national solution. The time has come for Congress to set reasonable limits on the litigation culture. We need a cap of $250,000 on non-economic damages, and we need reasonable limits on punitive damages. The House has already passed a good bill reforming medical liability. Now the Senate needs to act. No one was ever healed by a frivolous lawsuit.

Limit federal role in health care

Cheney supports the GOP platform, which says about health care:
• Truly positive market forces occur when individuals have the ability to make individual marketplace decisions.
• We therefore strongly encourage support of the emerging concepts of defined contribution plans and medical savings accounts.
• Individuals should be free to manage their own health care needs through Flexible Savings Accounts (FSAs) and Medical Savings Accounts (MSAs).
• These initiatives make a government takeover of health care as anachronistic as surgery without anesthesia.
• We will make these accounts the vanguard of a new consumer rights movement in health care.
• Our overall philosophy is to trust state and local government to know what best suits the needs of their people.
• We believe the federal government should respect the states’ traditional authority to regulate health insurance, health care professionals, and health practice guidelines through their medical boards.

Prescription drug benefits for Medicare recipients

Fund Medicare psychologists; self-employees; & organ donors

Cheney co-sponsored the following bills in Congress:
• H.R.774 (1989):A bill with respect to coverage of services of psychologists under the medicare program.
• H.R.11 (1986) & H.R.3487 (1984):A bill to provide that one-half of the amounts paid by a self-employed taxpayer for his or her health insurance premiums will be allowed as a business deduction.
• H.R.4080 & H.R. 5580 (1984):A bill to authorize financial assistance for organ procurement organizations, and for other purposes.

Require HMO registration & AIDS testing

Cheney co-sponsored the following bills in Congress:
• H.R.186 (1988):A bill to require the registration of certain nonprofit entities which provide health services and sell prescription drugs.
• H.R.2272 & H.R.2273 (1988):A bill to prohibit grants to any public entity that does not establish requirements with respect to testing for AIDS.
• H.CON.RES.40 (1989):Expressing the sense of Congress that Medicare payments should not be reduced below the levels provided in current law.

Voted against 1979 hospital cost control plan

Cheney’s votes on key social issues bills in Congress:
• Voted NO to impose textile import limits over Reagan veto (1986)
• Voted YES to weaken gun control laws (1986)
• Voted YES to reject hospital cost control plan (1979)
• Voted NO to establish the Department of Education (1979)
• Voted YES to approve anti-busing Amendment (1979)

Voted YES on funding GOP version of Medicare prescription drug benefit.