CMA Supports Senate Move to Expand Health Care Coverage, Says Access to Care Must Be Protected
[Posted 05/18/09]

As part of the ongoing federal health reform discussion, the U.S. Senate Finance Committee last week released a thoughtful analysis of ways to expand the nation’s health care coverage. The committee’s paper, titled “Expanding Health Care Coverage: Proposals to Provide Affordable Coverage to All Americans,” includes a number of ideas for reforming the insurance marketplace, improving the affordability of coverage, and reforming public health care programs. The Senate Finance Committee is one of two Senate committees with jurisdiction over health care reform efforts.

The analysis proposes, among other things:

• Required individual and employer contributions to health coverage;
• Establishment of a health insurance “exchange” through which consumers can purchase coverage;
• Targeted tax credits for individuals and small businesses;
• Expansion of public health programs;
• Required market reforms for participating insurers.

CMA believes that insurance market reforms will be critical to expanding access to care. CMA supports the paper’s proposal for a health insurance exchange (a government-coordinated pool for consumers to purchase from), as long as it ensures patient choice by providing enough plans to facilitate competition and keep cost down.

“In California, doctors have long argued for a system that provides universal access to health care,” said CMA President Dev GnanaDev, MD, who recently travelled to Washington, DC to discuss federal health reform with key members of Congress. “Expanding coverage is a start, but does not necessarily translate into patients having access to doctors when they need it, a critical component of people staying healthy and checking rising health care costs.”

The finance committee’s paper also proposes the expansion of public health programs to cover more low-income families. CMA believes that before public programs are expanded, the shortcomings that currently hinder access to care for their enrollees must be addressed. As we’ve seen in California, the failure to fully fund Medi-Cal has led to well-documented shortages of providers, many of whom simply cannot afford to participate in the program. This has left patients struggling to get access to care. Any expansion to a these programs must have appropriate funding to ensure meaningful access to care.

The committee is scheduled to release a separate paper detailing financing options in coming weeks.

Contact: Elizabeth McNeil, 415/882-3376 or emcneil@cmanet.org.