In Florida stop, Kerry hammers Bush on health care policy

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- John F. Kerry returned to politically crucial Florida yesterday after a monthlong absence caused by three hurricanes that devastated parts of the state and told supporters that President Bush has failed to help the 45 million Americans without health insurance and is misleading voters about his proposal to address the problem.

"How can you be president of the United States for four years and watch the citizens you represent lose their health care day by day by day, and do nothing about it? Is that 'compassionate conservatism?' " Kerry said during a town hall meeting focused on health care issues at a convention center in this northeastern coastal community. His comments were rooted in recent Census Bureau figures showing that the number of Americans without health insurance has increased by 5.2 million people during Bush's term.

The Democratic presidential nominee highlighted his proposal to repeal tax cuts for people making over $200,000 a year that were enacted during the Bush presidency, so the money can be used to provide immediate coverage for all children and to create a federal fund that would assume responsibility for paying 75 percent of the cost of all medical cases over $50,000.

He said doing so will reduce the premiums to families insured by their employers by an average of $1,000.

"Here's another place George Bush is not telling the truth," Kerry said to the crowd of several hundred. "He says to you, 'John Kerry's health care plan is a "national takeover" of health care.' He says to you that I'm going to raise your taxes to do it. He says to you that it's a government-run plan. All three are not true, just not true. . . . If you don't want my help to lower your premiums, and you like the high premiums you've got, you are free to stay and pay 'em and keep on doing what you're doing. You make your choice," he said.

Even before Kerry spoke, the Bush-Cheney reelection committee rebutted his criticisms, citing two independent studies that found Kerry's plan would cost $1.25 trillion -- double Kerry's estimate -- and raise taxes an average of $1,115 per family.

"The American people aren't going to trust a candidate who empowers bureaucrats at the expense of doctors and patients," said Bush spokesman Steve Schmidt.

In the last month, the battle for Florida's 27 electoral votes came to a halt as hurricanes Charley, Frances, and Ivan lashed the Atlantic and Gulf coasts and the Florida Panhandle.

In that time, Bush has visited with the survivors and rescue crews and pledged over $3 billion in federal disaster assistance.

Bush's brother, Jeb, the governor of Florida, skipped the Republican National Convention to focus on relief efforts.

Kerry and his running mate, Senator John Edwards of North Carolina, were both in Florida yesterday, with Edwards stopping in Tampa before meeting up with Kerry at a joint rally in vote-rich Orlando.

Edwards told a crowd of more than 8,000 people gathered in the arena used by the Orlando Magic basketball team that the ticket had returned to "ground zero, where we're going to elect the next president of the United States."

In opening the town hall meeting, Kerry told the story of an Alabama worker who lost her job after she refused her boss's demand to remove a Kerry-Edwards bumper sticker from her car. He compared that treatment to the anger some Florida Democrats felt after they alleged they were blocked from voting or did not have their votes properly counted in the 2000 presidential race.

Bush beat Democrat Al Gore by 537 votes in Florida, gaining enough Electoral College votes to claim the presidency.

"Can you imagine that in 2004, in the United States of America?" Kerry asked after citing the story of the worker, Lynne Gobbell of Moulton, Ala., who joined him at the event. "Actually, in Florida, you can imagine that, and that's why I'm telling you in this race, this time, we are going to make sure that Americans get to express their votes, their rights. They're going to be heard, they're going to be counted. And every vote is going to be counted in this race."

Susan Milligan of the Globe staff contributed to this story from Washington. Glen Johnson can be reached at johnson@globe.com.