McCain's Dumb and Dumber health plan meets with great skepticism with Business leaders, From an NYT article today:

Despite steady declines this decade, employers still provide coverage to 62 percent of Americans younger than 65. Surveys show that they want to continue doing so to attract and maintain a productive workforce....

Officials with eight business trade groups contacted by The New York Times predicted the McCain plan would raise costs and force some employers to stop providing health benefits.

A recent survey of 187 corporate executives by the American Benefits Council and Miller & Chevalier, a consulting firm, found that three-fourths felt the repeal of the tax exclusion would have a “strong negative impact” on their workers. Only 4 percent said they would provide additional pay to fill any gaps.

John J. Castellani, president of the Business Roundtable, an association of leading chief executive officers, said his group instead supported extending the tax exclusion to those who bought coverage on their own. “One of the things we don’t want to do,” Mr. Castellani said, “is jeopardize 170 million Americans who do get insurance through their employers.”

James A. Klein, president of the American Benefits Council, said concern that the tax credits would not keep up with inflation was a primary reason his 280 member companies “take a very dim view” of repealing the tax exclusion.

Employer based health insurance is far from perfect but why blow up the one part of the healthcare system that actually works - the place where employees are educated, make their choices, maintain the data for efficient administration and payroll deduction, have support from HR and their insurance broker's staff for resolving the myriad issues that arise from insurer incompetence and claims practices AND where legal compliance with ERISA (plan fairness and reporting), HIPAA (employee healthcare privacy) and the various state laws and mandates are enforced.

Also the workplace is where a lot of wellness and prevention are now entering the programs to get people healthier and lower costs at hte same time.

McCain's plan shows a complete lack of understanding of the real issues with healthcare - no surprise since has never had to worry about it.