Local Legislators Support Health Care Bill
Medford Transcript
4/13/2006
On April 4, the Massachusetts Legislature overwhelmingly voted in support of health care legislation that aims to cover 95 percent of the state's population within three years. Every member of the Medford delegation supported the legislation that will cover the uninsured by expanding access to Medicaid, establishing a new program that will create more affordable plans for individuals and businesses, and requiring all residents to buy or retain health insurance coverage by July 1, 2007 as long as affordable coverage is available.
Under the plan, businesses will be required to offer their employees coverage or pay a $295 assessment to the state for each uninsured employee.
"Massachusetts has seized the opportunity to make the goal of achieving health care coverage for all citizens a reality," said Sen. Patricia Jehlen, D-Somerville. "Passage of this legislation represents a historic step toward our shared vision to make health care more affordable and accessible for the people of Massachusetts."
"Health care will now be a reality for nearly every resident in the commonwealth," added Rep. Paul J. Donato, D-Medford. "In addition to expanding quality coverage to over 500,000 uninsured residents in the state we also protected hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding by passing the health care reform legislation."
"The Legislature, our delegation, and I are proud to have seized this historic opportunity to overhaul a broken system and deliver affordable, quality coverage to nearly all of the state's uninsured residents over the next three years," continued Rep. Carl Sciortino, D-Medford.
Major provisions of the legislation include:
· Individual Mandate: Holding true to a long tradition of Massachusetts "firsts," the bill creates a first-in-the-nation individual mandate to require all residents who can afford it to purchase health insurance.
· Employer Responsibility: The legislation creates a new Fair Share Contribution by requiring all businesses to contribute toward employee health insurance costs. This provision levels the playing field to ensure that employers who provide insurance no longer pay twice: once for their own employees and again for their competitors' employees.
· New State Subsidies: The bill establishes new state subsidies for individuals with incomes less than 300 percent of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL). Adults with incomes up to 100 percent FPL ($9,700) will be eligible for coverage without premiums.
· MassHealth Expansion: The legislation expands the commonwealth's MassHealth program to include children from families up to 300 percent of FPL ($48,000 for a family of three). In addition, it restores all previously cut benefits, including dental and vision services, chiropractic and prosthetics, and creates a smoking cessation pilot program for MassHealth enrollees.
· Fair Reimbursement Rates: The bill calls for long overdue increases in reimbursement rates to hospitals, physicians, and community health centers for treating the Commonwealth's MassHealth patients. These increases are tied to quality and other performance measures.
Once implemented, the consensus plan will be a national model.