SEARING:

Kerry’s NH story lacks key details (SCOTT BROOKS, 8/08/04, New Hampshire Sunday News)

Sen. John Kerry often tells a story about John and Mary Ann Knowles. The Democratic Presidential nominee points to this local couple’s difficulties as evidence of the failure of the Bush administration’s health care policies.

According to the Massachusetts senator, it’s the story of a man who lost his job, and a woman undergoing debilitating cancer treatments who feared she would lose their health insurance if she did not work every day.

But while the Knowles couple, by any measure, has had a rough go of it lately, John Knowles told the New Hampshire Sunday News a different story last week.

He said Mary Ann could have taken disability leave without losing health insurance, although her pay would have been cut somewhat. She did not take time off, he said, but that was to conserve her sick days, not to protect her insurance. They both say she has good health coverage.

Mary Ann’s employer suggests that Kerry misstated the situation.

The Kerry campaign yesterday defended the candidate’s statements, but said that Mary Ann did take time off during chemotherapy.

He's turning into Al Gore.

Posted by Orrin Judd at August 10, 2004 12:42 PM