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Even before the election fever had officially gripped the nation it was no secret that the issue of affordable healthcare was raring to play a big role in determining who would claim the top seat in the next election. The problem of affordable healthcare has plagued the United States for a while, and it has become a constant source of debate as the nation struggles to find a plan for healthcare that will work. This great debate once again came up during the latest debate between current president Barack Obama and the Republican candidate Mitt Romney.

The quest for swing voters

There is no denying the effect that swing voters can have on the results of an election. From the manner of the debate, it was quite clear that both President Obama and Romney were on a quest to woo the swing voters. Both candidates clearly steered away from the attack lines that most voters considered to be quite harsh. The president did not mention Romney’s statement that 47% of Americans depended on the government, and Mr. Romney also failed to bring up the president’s infamous “you didn’t build that” speech. This did not bring down the quality of the debate.

The great Medicare debate

The issue of the Medicare was a key point in the debate, and it is quite possible that many people watched the debate just to see who would say what on this issue. The Medicare issue has been a weak point for the Republicans, and the president was quick to exploit by stating that Mr. Romney’s intention of overhauling his Medicare plans would put the whole program in jeopardy, and that it would turn Medicare into a voucher program. He even finished off by stating that Romney’s plans would leave people like his (the president’s) grandmother at the private insurance system’s mercy.

The Medicare plan in question has been stated by both the Republican and his running mate and according to them it will offer “premium support” where the retirees would  be given the option of either going for the traditional Medicare or a private insurance option that would be subsidized by the government. Mr. Romney did go on to state that he himself would rather have a private plan as he didn’t want the government telling him what sort of healthcare that he should get. Mr. Romney went on to further state the good that would come off the private sector.

While Mr. Romney has stated that he intends to overhaul the president’s current healthcare plan, he hasn’t fully stated the system that he intends to replace it with before, and the president took full advantage of this. On this night however, Mr. Romney stated his intention to take up the plan that he himself passed while he was the governor of Massachusetts, which brought to the state an insurance coverage that was close to universal. Surprisingly, this same plan is quite similar to the plan that is being implemented by the president. The president even stated that his idea came from the system in Massachusetts. According to Martin O’Malley, the governor of Maryland, this meant that Romney’s intention to change the dynamics of the race with this point failed.