Opponents mix it up in final debate

Monday, Nov. 6, 2000 | 11:28 a.m.

U.S. Senate contenders John Ensign and Ed Bernstein traded barbs on health care reform, abortion and nuclear waste but said little new during a televised debate that was their last before Tuesday's election.

In an hourlong roundtable debate aired Sunday on KLAS Channel 8 and moderated by Sun columnist Jon Ralston, Republican Ensign and Democrat Bernstein stuck with familiar themes.

Bernstein said he favored an unlimited right to sue health maintenance organizations and employers who operate self-insurance programs, such as is the case with many Strip resorts. He said employers must be held liable if they participate in medical decisions.

Former Rep. Ensign also said he favors a right to sue HMOs but would exclude employers from liability because he said many would drop employee coverage if they had to defend costly lawsuits. He said that would result in adding to the state's population of uninsured individuals.

In the context of health care reform, they also picked on each other's base of financial support. Ensign, a veterinarian, was chastised for his heavy support from HMOs while Bernstein, an attorney, was similarly lambasted for his backing from trial lawyers.

It was on their competing prescription drug plans for seniors under Medicare, however, where the candidates exposed each other's Achilles' heels. Ensign criticized Bernstein because he said his opponent's plan was similar to one supported by the Clinton administration.

"Our plan saves twice as much money as the president's plan," Ensign said. "His plan would bankrupt Medicare. Our plan, over a 10-year period of time, is about $100 billion, which is a lot of money. The president's plan, Al Gore's plan, cost $253 billion over 10 years."

But Bernstein hammered his foe because he said Ensign's plan would require seniors who make less than $17,000 annually to pay the first $1,200 out of pocket before their benefits would kick in. Bernstein said his plan would be free for seniors earning less than $15,000.

"That's part of the problem," Bernstein said. "First of all, 70 percent of the seniors don't spend $1,200 a year, and the people who earn less than $17,000 are the people who are least able to afford prescription drugs."

In defense, Ensign said Medicaid would pick up the cost of prescription drugs for the poorest seniors, but he failed to explain how that would square with the out-of-pocket expense for someone earning less than $17,000 annually. And Bernstein similarly dodged the issue when he failed to say how his plan differed from that of the Clinton administration, other than to say it would be less expensive for seniors.

On the abortion issue, Ensign denied that he was ducking his anti-abortion position by running television advertisements playing up his support of women's issues such as breast cancer research.

"Women don't just care about abortion as the only issue," Ensign said.

Bernstein, who supports abortion rights, has tried to use his position to woo female voters but conceded the issue did not belong in politics.

"That's the point," he said. "The government should not intervene when it comes to these types of personal decisions."

Both candidates oppose proposals to ship high-level nuclear waste to Nevada, but they again disagreed as to which individual would do a better job defending the state on this issue.

"One of the big problems that we face today is (Senate Majority Leader) Trent Lott," Bernstein said of the Mississippi Republican. "Because he's the majority leader we keep having these nuke waste bills coming up for a vote. The way that we need to stop this in the Senate is by changing control of the Senate from Republican to Democrat."

But Ensign argued that construction of a potential permanent nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas has been proceeding at a rapid pace under the Clinton administration.

"This is not a partisan issue, and it should not be a partisan issue," Ensign said. "It is a Nevada issue."

The winner of Tuesday's general election will replace Sen. Richard Bryan, D-Nev., who chose not to seek re-election. The race is for a six-year term.