New Jersey Gubernatorial Candidates Spar Over Women's Health Coverage In Insurance Proposal

Main Category: Women's Health / Gynecology
Also Included In: Health Insurance / Medical Insurance
Article Date: 26 Aug 2009 - 3:00 PDT

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A "heated battle" has developed between New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine (D), who is seeking re-election in November, and Republican challenger Chris Christie over mammography coverage under Christie's health insurance proposal, the Newark Star-Ledger reports. According to the Star-Ledger, the debate began when Christie posted a video on his Web site proposing that low-cost insurance plans be exempt from state mandates that require coverage of certain benefits. Christie said the new option would appeal to "young people" who "may not need the chance to have every type of procedure that's available in the medical world."

Corzine and his supporters say Christie's proposal trivializes the importance of state-mandated coverage for medical screenings, including mammograms. According to Corzine's supporters, the proposal would undo a state law requiring insurers to pay for mammograms for women younger than age 40 who have a family history of breast cancer. In a statement, Corzine said that Christie's proposal would allow bare-bones plans to forgo mandatory coverage for 24-hour maternity stays -- a requirement stemming from a law that Corzine’s running mate, state Sen. Loretta Weinberg (D), sponsored. About two-thirds of New Jersey residents with health insurance are unaffected because they are covered by self-insured and federally regulated plans not subject to state mandates, according to the Star-Ledger.

In a follow-up video responding to the criticism, Christie called Corzine "a liar" and described how a mammogram helped save his mother's life by detecting a cancerous tumor. Christie said later, "Because I want to offer people other options that they knowingly can either pursue or not pursue, that does not make me 'anti' any of the mandates that are covered under the insurance policies now.'' He added, "I am trying to get people to say if they want less expensive coverage that has less mandates, they should have the option to pick it. No one is going to be required to do it."

Brigid Harrison, a Montclair State University political science professor, said the feud between Corzine and Christie over the mammogram issue helps define the differences in their approaches to health policy. "One person advocates for a mandate-free insurance system and one doesn't," Harrison said. She added that focusing on mammogram coverage "enables Corzine to remind women voters, who tend to lean Democrat anyway, there is a difference between him and Christie" (Livio, Newark Star-Ledger, 8/23).

Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.nationalpartnership.org. You can view the entire Daily Women's Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery here. The Daily Women's Health Policy Report is a free service of the National Partnership for Women & Families, published by The Advisory Board Company.

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