In less than 3 months, millions of Americans – including the 70,225 US medical students[i] - will head to the polls to elect the next President of the United States. Health care is on the minds of all voters: the issue was 3rd with 13% of people polled saying it was the most important in deciding their vote (the economy was 1st at 48%, the war in Iraq 2nd at 18%).[ii] One particular health care issue, HIV/AIDS, received renewed attention in the US when the Center for Disease Control (CDC) released data stating that the number of new HIV infections in the US reached 56,300 in 2006—a number 40% higher than prior CDC estimates.[iii]
The combination of high season for presidential politics, concern over the state of the US health care system, and alarm over the new CDC data have led to a seemingly simple question: Where do Senators John McCain and Barack Obama stand on the issues surrounding HIV/AIDS?
According to the Kaiser Family Foundation[iv] and an article in the Huffington Post,[v] Senator McCain “has not put forth a formal plan or strategy to address HIV/AIDS domestically or globally, or global health more generally,” and Senator Obama has “introduced a plan to address HIV/AIDS, both domestically and globally, and a broader global development plan, during 2007.”[vi]
For a more detailed breakdown of where the candidates fall on specific issues related to HIV/AIDS, visit:
- 2008 Presidential Candidate Issue Spotlight: Global Health and HIV/AIDS, a resource from the Kaiser Family Foundation, a non-profit, non-partisan group: http://www.health08.org/issue_globalhealth_hivaids.cfm
- U.S. Presidential Candidates’ Health Care Plans 2008: HIV/AIDS Proposals – A Time for Leadership, by Susan Blumenthal, MD, MPA—former Assistant Surgeon General, Senior Advisor at the Center for the Study of the Presidency, and retired rear admiral: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/susan-blumenthal/us-presidential-candida_b_76552.html
For a look at the candidates views on health care more generally, visit:
- AMSA’s 2008 Presidential Election Home Page: http://amsa.org/election/
- 2008 Presidential Candidate Health Plan Report Card, by the National Physician’s Alliance (NPA): http://npalliance.org/content/pages/2008_presidential_candidate_health_plan_report_card
- McCain’s official site for health care: http://www.johnmccain.com/healthcare/
- Obama’s official site for health care: http://www.barackobama.com/issues/healthcare/
Sources
[i] AAMC, Total Active Enrollement by US Medical School and Sex, 2002-2007. Accessed on 20 Aug 2008 at http://www.aamc.org/data/facts/2007/schoolenrll0207.htm.
[ii] CNN/Opinior Research Corp. Poll: “Which of the following issues will be MOST important to you when you decide how to vote for president?” Conducted 29 July 2008. Accessed 20 Aug 2008 at http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/issues/.
[iii] CDC, New Technology Reveals Higher Number of New HIV Infections in the United States than Previously Known. Press release. 3 Aug 2008. Acccessed on 20 Aug 2008 at
http://www.cdc.gov/media/pressrel/2008/r080803.htm
[iv] Kaiser Family Foundation. 2008 Presidential Candidate Issue Spotlight: Global Health and HIV/AIDS. http://www.health08.org/issue_globalhealth_hivaids.cfm
[v] Blumenthal S, Shive M, Hoffman BL, Ko Y. U.S. Presidential Candidates’ Health Care Plans 2008: HIV/AIDS Proposals – A Time for Leadership. Huffington Post. 12 Dec 2007. Accessed on 20 Aug 2008 at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/susan-blumenthal/us-presidential-candida_b_76552.html
[vi] Kaiser, 2008.
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