Edwards Details Plan to Cut Health Costs

U.S. Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards Thursday laid out his plan for cutting healthcare costs.

Americans today aren’t getting the quality of healthcare they pay for and can’t afford the cost of the care they do receive, said the former North Carolina senator.

Edwards’ proposal would make universal healthcare affordable by regulating the insurance industry, encouraging providers to adopt health information technology and allowing consumers to import drugs from Canada.

If the plan were enacted, it would save the average family $2,000 to $2,500 per year and reduce overall healthcare spending by $130 billion per year, Edwards said.

Edwards called for universal healthcare in February, but did not release details on how the plan would generate cost savings at that time.