Finding the Lupiest Candidate

Personally, I know where my vote is going for president, but I thought it would be cool to do research in order to write how the candidates fair for lupies. In researching this issue, I found myself fairly disappointed. First I went to the respective web sites for Senators John McCain and Barack Obama. Senator McCain does have a fairly extensive plan for health care. I would think it is a pretty decent plan if not for the fact that Senator Obama stated that the funds provided for purchase of health care in Senator McCain's plan would be taxed. That bothers me.

Senator McCain mentions chronic conditions on his site. He says, "By emphasizing prevention, early intervention, healthy habits, new treatment models, new public health infrastructure and the use of information technology, we can reduce health care costs." I'm concerned there isn't a mention of any particular plan to promote this. I am heartened by the fact that he states more money should be dedicated to research.

Senator Obama has a pretty detailed plan on his disability policy. A lot of it has to do with children and early screening. He does mention a pretty interesting policy on helping those with disabilities obtain higher education. He also voted for the Individual with Disabilities Education Amendment. This one resonates with me because I've been working on my Bachelor's degree for longer than I care to mention. It has been very difficult because if I go into a flare, it is nearly impossible to keep up with classes. Sometimes I get understanding professors, but most of the time, I don't.

Also, Senator Obama supports Universal Healthcare which would be beneficial for lupies who have problems obtaining health care.

In checking Project Vote Smart at I found that Senator Obama voted for stem cell research two out of three times. Senator McCain voted for stem cell research all three times.

Who should lupies vote for? I think it depends on your priorities. If you're a lupie who isn't working and on disability or if you work part-time and can't afford health care, your better vote would likely be for Senator Obama. His health care plan would likely be better for lupies who have a problem affording health care.

If you have a job and health care and your main concern is finding a cure and a better way of dealing with lupus, McCain would likely be your guy. I'm not certain on this, but McCain in my opinion would more likely support research. I say this only because I don't know Senator Obama's position on this.

If rights for people with disabilities is your issue, go with Obama. He is a strong supporter for rights of those with disabilities. I think that overall, the better candidate for lupies is Barack Obama. He speaks to the issues that the majority of people with lupus face.

Take care. Vote smart. Live lupie!

LupieKat