Tuesday, 23 January 2007
The Health Coverage Coalition For The Uninsured
More than a dozen of the largest and most influential healthcare groups, organizations, and corporations are preparing to propose a health insurance plan before Congress to reduce the number of uninsured Americans.
The proposal will make it easier for low-income families and individuals to pay for healthcare. The plan calls for expanding government-sponsored programs such as Medicaid and children’s health insurance programs, along with providing tax breaks.
While the plan’s long-term goal is to reduce by half the number of uninsured Americans — currently estimated at 47 million — the primary focus will be to insure children. The plan would automatically enroll uninsured children in health insurance plans — much like they would be enrolled for school lunch programs.
In a press release, the American Medical Association said that the “agreement includes a balance of private and public initiatives and is the culmination of lengthy meetings among the groups over approximately two years. It allows the new Congress to begin its work on health coverage from a proposal that already has the agreement of diverse advocates.”
This particular plan has created a stir because of the many different groups that form the HCCU coalition. The diverse set of organizations in the coalition include AARP, the American Medical Association, and health insurance companies Kaiser Permanente, UnitedHealth Group, and the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association.
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