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Kenny HulshofKenny Hulshof, 50, is the incumbent 9th District U.S. congressman, a post he has held since 1997. He is a former special prosecutor for the attorney general's office and worked as a court-appointed public defender in Cape Girardeau. He also owns and operates a family farm in Bertrand, a southeast Missouri community. Hulshof has proposed a program called Healthy Missouri Access Exchange, or HealthMAX, through which the state would pay insurance premiums and subsidize individual health savings accounts. Participants also would pay an unspecified amount for their plans. He says the plan, which he would extend to the state work force and phase in over five years, would cover about 500,000 Missouri residents who lack health insurance now. Participants would get up to $500 for regular check-ups and routine doctor visits and could either cash out or roll over any leftover money at the end of the year. Hulshof says he would review state tax credits to ensure Missouri is business-friendly. He wants to increase school funding without raising taxes and ensure public school funding is decided by elected officials, not the courts. He supported the sale of assets of the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority to finance capital projects on Missouri campuses. Hulshof has taken a "no new taxes" pledge, saying the government must establish priorities and focus on essential services. |