Monday, 15 October 2007
Pennsylvania Governor Offers Healthcare Reform For The State
Governor Ed Rendell is currently on a 6-day bus tour around Pennsylvania campaigning for his healthcare reform plan, Prescription for Pennsylvania.
His plan addresses the main problems of the state’s healthcare system, including the growing number of uninsured residents, rising insurance rates, and the increasing coverage limits.
Businesses would be offered a low-cost health insurance option for businesses under Rendell’s proposal to purchase coverage for their employees. Any business who did not buy insurance would be required to pay a 3% payroll tax. Additional funding for the plan would come from a 10 cent tax increase on tobacco. Rendell also said roughly $100 million from the federal government, reported the Pittsburgh Tribune Review.
The proposal would lower health insurance costs for businesses in five years explained Rendell — 20 percent to 30 percent for small businesses and 16 percent for large business.
“A lot of this is a common-sense approach to keeping costs down. It’s actually getting to the costs of health care and the reasons health care is so high,” said John Tague, who is vice chairman of the board of the Consumer Health Coalition.
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