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From washingtonpost.com:
Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) on Monday proposed a system of universal health insurance for Californians that would make the nation's most populous state the third to guarantee medical coverage for all its residents.
"Prices for health care and insurance are rising twice as fast as inflation, twice as fast as wages.
"My solution is that everyone in California must have insurance.
Arnold Schwarzenegger discusses his plan to extend health coverage to nearly all Californians during a news conference in Sacramento, Calif.
Much of the opposition to Schwarzenegger's program, which requires legislative approval, is expected to come from his fellow Republicans, who object that the plan will be costly for small businesses.
Nearly one in five California residents does not have health insurance -- a total of 6.5 million people, many of whom seek expensive care in emergency rooms.
Nationwide, the ranks of the uninsured are growing.
Analysts say the California proposal is illustrative of the resurgence of interest among politicians at all levels in expanding health coverage to the uninsured and that it provides fresh evidence that, with Congress stalled on enacting comprehensive health-care reform, the states are beginning to take matters into their own hands.
Schwarzenegger also recommended expanding the state's existing program for children's health insurance to families that earn less than three times the poverty level, or about $60,000 for a family of four.
The governor also wants to force insurers to offer coverage to people with existing medical conditions.
Money for the program would come from new taxes on doctors (2 percent of their revenue) and hospitals (4 percent), federal funds, and county funds that now pay for emergency care for the uninsured.
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Posted on January 8, 2007 10:43 PM
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