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Sponsor: Sen. John F. Kerry of Massachusetts, Democrat for president. This 30-second television commercial, titled “Paperwork,” began airing Tuesday and is targeted for local broadcasts in Florida, Iowa, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Washington state, West Virginia and Wisconsin.

Script: Kerry: “We spend about $1.5 trillion every year on healthcare in America; $350 billion of that has nothing to do with care. It’s all paperwork. Administrative overhead. I have a healthcare plan that can reduce the cost of healthcare. We can lower their premiums. And we will save literally billions of dollars in healthcare costs in America by becoming more streamlined and more efficient. I am John Kerry and I approve this message.”

Images: The spot begins with text over a white background: “John Kerry on Healthcare in America.” It then shows a close-up of Kerry, wearing a shirt and tie and filmed as though speaking to someone just off camera. As he makes points, the camera zooms in on his face, which is half lighted and half in shadow. In the final shot, Kerry, without a necktie, smiles to an audience.

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Analysis: Kerry continues to pitch his health initiative to voters, repeating the phrase “healthcare” four times for emphasis. Previously, he argued that the nation needed a new plan for the uninsured. Now, he says his plan will improve on the tangled bureaucracy of managed care. Kerry’s campaign cites the government, the New England Journal of Medicine and Associated Press for the ad’s financial statistics. In addition, a healthcare expert and former Clinton administration official, Kenneth E. Thorpe of Emory University in Atlanta, has estimated that Kerry’s plan would cost the government $653 billion over 10 years and would expand coverage to 27 million Americans who now lack insurance. President Bush’s campaign calls Kerry’s promises unrealistic and says his plan would increase government bureaucracy, drive up costs and trigger harmful tax increases.

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Compiled by Times staff writer Nick Anderson

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