Pat Toomey penned an op-ed that appeared in the Wilkes-Barre Times Leader that describes President Obama’s health reform legislation as “misguided and unaffordable.”

“Instead of making health care more affordable,” writes Toomey, “the $2.3 trillion legislation will actually make health care more expensive and cause premiums to rise, according to the Medicare actuary and the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.”

Toomey then goes on to outline his plan for health insurance reform as a part of what other Republican leaders have termed “repeal and replace.”

Toomey’s plan, condensed:

  1. Give individuals who buy their own health insurance the same tax benefits as those who receive insurance through their employer.
  2. Let people buy insurance across state lines. Consumers are now captive to the limited options available in their state. This limits competition and breeds fewer choices and higher prices.
  3. Pass reasonable tort reform. Runaway lawsuits not only raise the cost of health care, they force doctors to practice defensive medicine to diminish the risk of being sued.
  4. Let small businesses and organizations band together to form associations that would be able to buy health insurance under federal regulation on behalf of their members. This will let small businesses compete with larger corporations when it comes to providing employees with insurance.

For comparison, take a look at Whole Foods CEO John Mackey’s op-ed in the Wall Street Journal last August, providing the “Whole Foods alternative to Obamacare.”