Three thoughts before you read this article -
1. This is prolly designed to soften up the electorate to accept Government-provided 'universal' Hillarycare
2. I'd check the Kennedy family connexions to insurance and insurance 'consulting' companies
3. Prepare to be horrified. I was. |
People who refuse to obtain health insurance could be tracked down by the state or a private contractor, enrolled in a plan and fined until they pay their premiums under one proposal Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's administration is considering as part of his vision for covering all Californians.The proposal, which administration aides said was one of many the governor was considering, was presented at a meeting Tuesday with representatives from insurers, hospitals, doctors, business groups and consumer advocates. It drew immediate criticism from critics of the central tenet of Schwarzenegger's healthcare approach, which is to require all Californians to obtain insurance. Although the governor's office has been emphasizing the efforts it would make to help people find insurance voluntarily — including subsidies to the poor and outreach through schools, state agencies and healthcare providers — the outlines of the enforcement proposal inflamed some of those the administration has been courting for support. Beth Capell, a lobbyist for the Service Employees International Union's California organization, | Nice work, LA Times...the first quote out of the box is from a union hack. |
said the fines might be unfairly levied on people caught without health insurance because of circumstances beyond their control. Those included people in between jobs and those starting employment in companies that did not provide healthcare for the first months of work. "We're going to punish them if they don't go out and buy health insurance on their own — health insurance that they can't afford at the moment that they are least able to afford it," Capell said.
Other proposals, which Schwarzenegger included in the first draft of his healthcare plan, are to attach the wages of people who don't buy insurance and to increase the amount they owe in state income taxes.Kim Belshé, secretary of the state Health and Human Services Agency, emphasized that "nothing is set in stone." But Schwarzenegger's call for "shared responsibility" includes a need for everyone to be part of the insurance system, she said.| "We wouldn't like to look anti-social, now would we?" she chirped, slowly drawing on latex gloves and reaching for the tray with the hypodermic needle... |
The proposal to locate people without insurance would use state or private databases and target those who lacked coverage for 60 days or more. The administration said the goal was to be helpful and the initial notification would be designed to alert people to the need for insurance and provide ways for them to find coverage.
Only those who still did not obtain insurance would be subject to involuntary measures."It represents one approach to enforcement," Belshé said of the proposal. "But I want to underscore the emphasis of the governor and the administration is on enrollment, and creating a culture of coverage that connects people to affordable, available health coverage."| A "culture of coverage." I think I'm gonna be ill, but I better check with my minder first... |
With more than 6 million residents lacking medical coverage in California, the requirement to obtain health insurance is one of the most contentious points of Schwarzenegger's plan. Schwarzenegger wants to offer public subsidies to the least affluent Californians. But many Democratic legislators, unions and consumer advocates have objected that others will not be able to afford even the bare-bones, high-deductible plans that Schwarzenegger would require as a minimum, which cost $1,200 a person a year. Those plans would include deductibles as high as $5,000 on top of the premiums, and would be geared toward protecting people from the costs of catastrophic medical bills, such as those arising from surgery or cancer treatment.
Peter Harbage, a senior program associate with the nonpartisan think tank the New America Foundation, said relatively few people would have to be forced to buy insurance. Schwarzenegger has cited the foundation's research in helping to frame his plan. "Most people are going to have insurance if the program is well designed and well constructed," he said in an interview Tuesday."A dream that will take
All the dough you must give
Ev'ry day of your life
For as long as you live!" |
"And then you're going to have some people who are bad actors, and that's where you need some sort of tracking system.""Bad actor! Youse didn't pay your protection money buy health insurance! It's too bad, nice place youse got here." |
The governor said he is studying as a possible model a new system the state Department of Motor Vehicles is using to locate drivers who lack automobile insurance. Another model, he said, is the one the state uses to track down people who don't pay child support. "There's no easy way to come up with a tracking model," he said. "It's going to take some thought and it's going to be complex."| Somehow the question of requiring 'undocumented immigrants' to register for health insurance is not addressed in this article. |
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