Posted on 01/08/2007 9:29:14 PM PST by NormsRevenge
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Monday laid out a sweeping proposal to extend health coverage to nearly all of California's 6.5 million uninsured people, promising to share the cost among businesses, individuals, hospitals, doctors, insurers and government.
The plan contains elements that are likely to provoke opposition from a wide range of powerful health care interests, including doctors, hospitals and insurers, as well as employers and unions. But it also contains carrots for each of them.
All Californians will be required to have insurance, and all but the smallest businesses will have to offer it to their workers. Insurers will no longer be allowed to deny coverage to people because of their medical problems.
All children, regardless of their immigration status, will be covered through an expansion of the state and federal Healthy Families program.
"I don't think it is a question or a debate if they ought to be covered ... The federal courts have made that decision - that no one can be turned away," Schwarzenegger said. "The question really isn't to treat them or not to treat them. The question really is how can you treat them in the most cost-effective way."
The governor was supposed to give his address in person to a panel of health care stakeholders. Instead, he spoke via video link. He is still recuperating from breaking his right femur during a December ski vacation in Idaho.
Under Schwarzenegger's plan, all Californians will be required to have insurance, although the poorest will be subsidized. Businesses with 10 or more employees will have to offer insurance to their workers or pay 4 percent of their payroll into a state fund.
Smaller businesses will be exempt. More than 80 percent of California companies fall into this category, Schwarzenegger spokeswoman Julie Soderlund said.
Kim Belshe, Schwarzenegger's health secretary, said requiring people to obtain health insurance is vital to the plan's success. Hospitals, doctors and insurers will benefit if everyone has insurance and if Medi-Cal reimbursement rates are increased, she said.
"We must come together to create a more functional health care system that provides care for everyone," Belshe said.
She said $10 billion to $15 billion in new money will go to doctors and hospitals under Schwarzenegger's plan, which is more than they will be asked to pay.
The insurance mandate is likely to be met with stiff resistance. Unions will balk at the individual requirement, while business groups and Republican legislators will protest the business aspect.
The state will subsidize the estimated 1.2 million low-income people who do not currently qualify for coverage under Medi-Cal. They would be able to buy insurance through a state-run pool and will have to make a small contribution toward their premiums.
Schwarzenegger is betting that his plan will save $10 billion to $15 billion a year by cutting health care costs and redirecting money already in the system, an ambitious goal. He says the savings will offset the new fees he is asking doctors and hospitals to pay.
Hospitals will have to pay 4 percent of their revenues, while doctors will pay 2 percent.
The state also will increase what it pays doctors and hospitals through Medi-Cal, which is widely seen as woefully underfunded.
Schwarzenegger's decision to include an employer mandate is a blow to his business allies, who waged an expensive fight against a similar requirement just three years ago - with the governor's help. Republicans reacted negatively.
"Imposing a new jobs tax on employers of any size and expanding costly government mandates is the wrong approach, one which will devastate our economy," Assembly Republican leader Mike Villines said in a statement. "We continue to agree with the governor's statements in 2004, when he argued that a new jobs tax will be a job killer and force many businesses to lay off workers, move out of state or close their doors for good."
Allan Zaremberg, president of the California Chamber of Commerce, said the governor was taxing businesses, doctors, hospitals and insurers to fund his plan. He questioned whether the skyrocketing cost of health care would mean that businesses would be asked to pay even more in the future, as premiums continued to rise.
"The biggest fear that we all face is that people who are satisfied with the system, who can afford the system, will suffer increased costs," said Zaremberg, one of the governor's key allies.
One business leader, Safeway chief executive Steve Burd, said the governor was on the right track. But he said businesses that do not offer health insurance should be charged more than 4 percent of their payrolls.
If it is cheaper for businesses to pay the fee than to insure their workers, businesses will have an incentive to drop coverage and let their employees join the state pool.
Whatever percent of California's economy is the black market now, increase it by 50%.
Schwarzenegger's decision to include an employer mandate is a blow to his business allies, who waged an expensive fight against a similar requirement just three years ago - with the governor's help. Republicans reacted negatively.
"Imposing a new jobs tax on employers of any size and expanding costly government mandates is the wrong approach, one which will devastate our economy," Assembly Republican leader Mike Villines said in a statement. "We continue to agree with the governor's statements in 2004, when he argued that a new jobs tax will be a job killer and force many businesses to lay off workers, move out of state or close their doors for good."
YEP...what you said.....as socialism grows so does the underground market
I am sorry I signed the recall petition. Even Davis wasn't stupid enough to try this. I hope there are enough Republicans with balls in the Calif. legislature to block this, but I doubt it.
And musclehead claims it's not a tax?
With California's economy being as large as it is, this will hurt the entire country over time. Having said that, it will be mildly amusing to watch them on the downward spiral of semi-socialized medicine.
What a moron.....rearranging the decks on the Titanic is going to save the Titanic?
This moron's plan simply boils down to A pays B, B pays C and C pays A, and therefore all three get rich!
Even my little son will figure this stupid logic.
Sadly, I live in this communist state.
Lets see, who does the government get their money from? Why, the individuals, and businesses.
I guess this means he's going to tax the crap out of individuals and businesses both visibly and invisibly, and tax the crap out of everyone again for the government buracracy that is going to manage this draconian socialist production line style of health care that Californicators are so stupidly crying for.
Californication, is doomed, but I for one really don't care. It's the only way people are going learn what this marxist dreamworld they've been crying for is going to really cost- their freedom- and most of their paycheck. (if they earn one) I guess nobody in Ca. need worry about affording that new, California regulated automobile either. They won't be able to afford one- ever. If they are lucky, they will be able to spend more time watching Oprah on TV, if the brown outs aren't too bad.
The Assembly appears united in its opposition. But the Administration played a fast one and tried to classify this as "not a tax" and not requiring 2/3 vote. Fabian thinks a simple majority is all that is required (which means Arnie and his Dem buddies could pass it with 0 Republican support, just as they did with global warming and other legislation, calling it "bipartisanship".)
See this thread, or the unexcerpted original.
CA: Health overhaul could end up in Calif. court (A tax or not a Tax?)
Correction:
The Assembly Republicans appear united in its opposition.
Business with 10 or more more employees will go by the wayside. If I had a business in Cali and employed 12 - 15 people, you can bet I would be thinking about creating two companies from the one or letting go some employees.
Not me. I wouldn't be sorry to sign a recall petition for Arnold either.
Don't you know how marxist government dictators work? If the underground economy impacts the treasury to much, they create more laws and turn even more citizens into criminals. Of course, they will need to hire more police to enforce these laws, but at this point it becomes a cheap thing to do, because they tax their salaries back anyways. Slowly, everyone working has a government title, but all they really are is poorly paid slaves.
Fire 3 and hire 6 illegals (for the cost of 1 part time tax paying one). Pay them in cash. It gets to the point where if you can't beat them, join them. Or hang on to your principles and just move to another State- at least 2 or three borders away from California, because the exodus will effect border states as well.
Brilliant Arnie! Hospitals in my area of Calif. are barely hanging on due to low Medi-Cal reimbursements and he is going to tack on a 4% tax. Arnold was emasculated by the unions 2 elections ago in the Nov. 2005 Special Statewide Election. He is just a hollow-shell "go-along-to-get-along" Austrian Socialist now.
Very similar wording to:
Redistribute The Wealth
Key provisions of Schwarzenegger's universal health care plan
http://www.bakersfield.com/119/story/93308.html
The Associated Press | Monday, Jan 8
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Monday laid out his plan to expand health care coverage to all Californians.
His steps include:
- Requiring all individuals to have a minimum level of coverage. Schwarzenegger says this is the best strategy for making the system cost-effective because everyone will be required to participate.
- Establishing that individual coverage must be substantial enough to protect families against catastrophic costs. The minimum health insurance benefit required would be a $5,000 deductible with maximum out-of-pocket limits of $7,500 per person or $10,000 per family.
- Providing very low-income individuals affordable coverage through expanded access to public programs such as Medi-Cal and Healthy Families. Lower-income residents would get increased financial assistance through a state-administered purchasing pool.
- Enforcing the individual mandate through income tax penalties for those who fail to buy health insurance. Anyone seeking access to health care services must present a coverage card.
- Requiring insurers to issue health insurance regardless of an applicant's health and limiting how much insurers can charge based on age or health status.
- Increasing the Medi-Cal rates paid to providers, hospitals and health plans to encourage greater participation and reflect the true cost of care delivery.
- Requiring health plans, insurers and hospitals to spend 85 percent of every premium dollar on patient care.
- Mandating that companies with 10 or more employees that choose not to offer health coverage contribute 4 percent of their payroll to the state's subsidized health plan.
- Directing $10 billion to $15 billion to hospitals and doctors as a "coverage dividend." Hospitals will then return 4 percent of gross revenue to the state and doctors 2 percent.
- Funneling the money from companies, hospitals, doctors and other sources into a new Health Care Services Fund, which will be separate from the state general fund and will pay for the expanded health coverage.
The trick on these things has always been the types of plans that the government finds acceptable. Mass. just skipped defining them, and left it up to a committee to figure out.
I expect the dim wits in Sacto will mandate a ridiculously rich plan, that will turn out to be a major burden for families. They despise high deductibles and HSA's or anything that allows smart people to make their own decisions on saving money. I've been up there, and the legislative aides have never had private coverage, other than their parents' plans.
They have no clue.
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