California Association of Health Underwriters Health Proposal

Following is a summary of the health plan proposed by the California Association of Health Underwriters from their website:

CAHU’s Healthy Solutions for California
Executive Summary
May 17, 2007

All Californians deserve a health care system that delivers both world-class care and financial security. They deserve a system that is accessible, affordable and fair. Californians deserve a system that boosts the state’s economy, attracts new businesses and strengthens existing enterprises. Californians also deserve a system that is realistic. We can only do so much as a single state; but what we can do, we should do.

The California Association of Health Underwriters (CAHU) is the state’s largest association for health insurance agents, brokers and other professionals. We occupy a unique place in the health care coverage system, working to connect Californians with their best possible coverage from health insurance providers. We see firsthand what’s working and what’s not. We educate consumers on their health care coverage choices, help them select the most appropriate plans for their specific needs and serve as their advocate if problems arise.

Requirements of Reform
As the Governor and State lawmakers move forward in efforts to reform California’s health care system, CAHU is putting forward its “Healthy Solutions” package of reforms and principles that we strongly believe should be used as guidelines for any and all proposed reform packages. Below are the core principles CAHU has identified in an effort to define the terms for a truly comprehensive health care reform effort.

 We believe any reform package must ensure that all Californians have basic health care coverage.
 We believe reform must bankrupt neither families nor the state.
 We believe reform must provide the state’s diverse population with equally diverse health care choices.
 We believe reform must promote ongoing and long-term innovation and experimentation that enable the state’s health care system to adapt over time to the evolving needs of its citizens.
 We believe reform must address and constrain skyrocketing medical care costs.
 We believe reform must provide consumers access to meaningful information and expert advice and counseling from licensed professionals.

The CAHU Healthy Solutions Plan:
Following the principles described above, CAHU has identified a number of specific elements of a comprehensive package of health care reforms, including:

1. Access for All
 Enroll the one million Californians who, while currently eligible for state programs such as MediCal and Healthy Families, fail to participate in them, reducing the state’s uninsured by nearly 15 percent
 Once 85 percent of those eligible to enroll in existing state programs have done so, as the state’s finances permit, these programs should be expanded to reach children up to 300 percent of the Federal Poverty Level and single adults up to 100 percent of the Federal Poverty Level
 Subsidies should be provided to Californians below 250 percent of the Federal Poverty Level enabling them to buy basic coverage in the private marketplace. As state finances permit, subsidies should be offered to individuals up to 400 percent of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) on a sliding scale (e.g., 90 percent of the cost of basic coverage for those below 150 percent of the FPL to 10 percent for those between 351 and 400 percent of the FPL)
 All Californians, regardless of income, should be required to have at least basic health care coverage

John Pack
Low Cost Health Insurance