NEWPORT NEWS, VA. — As the presidential campaign entered its final month, Democrat Barack Obama issued a sharp assault on Republican John McCain's healthcare proposal Saturday, arguing it would lead to higher taxes for some families and knock as many as 20 million people out of their current insurance plans.
The topic provided a new focus for the campaign, as Obama launched four television ads in battleground states criticizing McCain's plan. The candidates have spent the last two weeks sparring over the nation's financial crisis.
McCain held no public events Saturday as he prepared at his retreat near Sedona, Ariz., for Tuesday's debate.
The McCain healthcare plan would significantly alter the way many Americans get their healthcare coverage. It would eliminate tax breaks on employer-sponsored healthcare benefits and instead give Americans healthcare tax credits -- a $2,500 credit for individuals and a $5,000 credit for families.
Obama called the plan "radical" several times Saturday.
The McCain campaign argues its plan would reduce the amount most Americans spend on healthcare by creating more competition for insurance plans and better coverage options as more people seek plans in the private market.
"John McCain trusts the judgment of the American people," senior policy advisor Doug Holtz-Eakin said in a conference call responding to Obama's speech. "He's willing to put money in their hands because they know what's best."
But campaigning in heavily contested Virginia at a park overlooking the James River, Obama argued that the Arizona senator's plan amounted to "pulling an old Washington bait-and-switch."
"He gives you a tax credit with one hand -- but he raises your taxes with the other," Obama said.
"A $5,000 tax credit. That sounds pretty good," Obama said. But he noted that a survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation showed that the average cost of a family healthcare plan is $12,680. "Where would that leave you? Broke," Obama said.
A number of independent analysts have concluded that McCain's plan would prompt younger workers to abandon their employer-sponsored plans to find less expensive coverage on the open market -- meaning employers could end up with a pool of older workers, whose healthcare is more expensive. "Many employers will drop their healthcare plans altogether," Obama predicted.
