Indiana Study Group Discusses Proposals For State Health Care Changes

Main Category: Health Insurance / Medical Insurance
Also Included In: Public Health
Article Date: 03 Dec 2007 - 12:00 PDT

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The Indiana Healthcare Reform Study Group on Monday at a public discussion at the University of Southern Indiana outlined recommendations for health system change it will present to the state Legislature in 2009, the Evansville Courier & Press reports. The recommendations include:

• Requiring all state residents to have a minimum level of health coverage or face personal income tax penalties;
  
  
• Developing measures to ensure low-income individuals and families have access to affordable coverage;
  
  
• Requiring employers to provide affordable health coverage to workers that meet minimum standards or paying into a state health insurance fund;
  
  
• Allowing individuals to purchase health coverage through the state fund based on a tiered system of copayments tied to income levels;
  
  
• Assessing a tax on health care providers and a surtax on specialty hospitals that do not contribute to basic health care needs, such as through operating an emergency department; and
  
  
• Encouraging residents to find a "medical home" where they could coordinate different types of health care services through one facility.
  
  

Michael Foddrill, a program analyst with Indiana University's Center for Health Policy, said that the recommendations will be presented to the Legislature in 2009 to avoid being upstaged by property tax reform in 2008. However, Foddrill added that the full effects of the proposed changes, if they are adopted, would not be felt until 2046. The study group was funded by a grant from the state's Family and Social Services Administration (Wilson, Evansville Courier & Press, 11/27).

Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.