Senate to mull health bill

A bill that would extend affordable health care coverage to hundreds of thousands of uninsured Pennsylvania workers, including more than 12,000 in Luzerne County, is in the hands of the Republican-controlled state Senate.

The state House voted 118-81 to approve its version of the bill March 17. Drawn up by House Democrats, the bill bears similarities to Gov. Rendell’s “Cover All Pennsylvanians” plan.

The bill would create Pennsylvania Access to Basic Care (PA ABC), a program offering subsidized coverage to legal U.S. residents ages 19 to 64 who meet income guidelines and have gone 180 days without insurance. A family of four earning a maximum of $64,000 a year – or 300 percent of the federal poverty level – would qualify.

The program would give grants to small-business owners who offer health insurance coverage to their low-income workers and provide a health savings account option.

It also calls for the phasing out of MCare, a state insurance program that provides doctors with catastrophic coverage for medical malpractice.

One sticking point in the Senate might be the question of the funding source for the $120 million needed for the program’s first year. Some Democrats have suggested higher taxes on cigarettes or new taxes on tobacco products.

The program’s cost is expected to reach $1.1 billion by 2012-13 as it aims to cover 270,000 workers. The program would be funded with a combination of premiums, federal Medicaid dollars, tobacco settlement money and by using money from the state’s medical malpractice insurance fund.

Supporters of the bill, including state Rep. Todd A. Eachus, D-Butler Township, said the program would provide affordable preventive health care and save taxpayers millions in the long run.

All seven House members from the county, including lone Republican Karen Boback, voted in favor of the bill. Boback, of Harveys Lake, said she wanted to fulfill her promise to constituents that she’d move health care reform forward. She is one of 18 Republicans who supported the House measure.

PA ABC would take over coverage for 55,000 current adultBasic enrollees and expand coverage to the 80,000 on the waiting list, including 1,665 county residents. It would expand coverage to include preventive care, prescription drugs, behavioral health services and chronic disease management.

The premiums for program participants would be based on income and could range from zero to $311 per month.

Boback and Eachus said members of the senate Republican leadership have voiced opposition to the plan, but they’re hoping some GOP senators put politics aside.

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State House OKs legislation that would extend insurance to thousands of Pennsylvanians.

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