Dublin, Ohio – President Bush mixed politics with his prescription for what ails the nation’s health-care system on a trip Wednesday to Ohio, a pivotal state in his re-election and one with key races in this year’s midterm elections.
The president made his case for health savings accounts at Wendy’s International Inc., where 9,000 employees have signed up for the accounts since the hamburger giant began offering them last year.
The Ohio governor’s race and about a half-dozen House and Senate seats from the state are competitive in this year’s election, and whether voters stick with Republican incumbents could foreshadow voter sentiment in 2008.
In pushing health savings accounts, Bush said people will become more responsible shoppers because they’ll pay more of the initial costs of their health care. But there’s a catch: To qualify, a person also must buy a separate health-insurance policy with a high deductible.
Such policies require individuals to pay the first $1,050 in medical expenses a year; families have to pay the first $2,100. Some policies carry higher deductibles.
