California Individual And Group Health Insurance Plans

The Sacramento Bee -Aug. 13: The stage is set for a do-nothing year when it comes to health care reform in California. The Democrats who run the California Legislature are working on a bill that would essentially scrap the world of private health plans and create a single, state-run insurance program.Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is sure to veto it, if the bill manages to get to his desk. And both sides can point to the other as the reason for gridlock. "The governor just doesn't get it," says Sheila Kuehl, the state senator from Santa Monica who is promoting the state-run health system.Frankly, the same could be said of Kuehl. Reforming something as big and as broken as the health care system is an exercise in finding common political ground. If this small miracle of reforming health care were to happen and there is reason to hope that it will the road will quickly lead to Massachusetts.Why Massachusetts? There, the legislature is controlled by Democrats. The governor, Mitt Romney, is a Republican. The state for years argued about how to reform its health care system, how to insure more people and how to pay for coverage for those who can't afford it. But then Massachusetts overcame the odds and actually managed to agree on major changes. The specifics may not be right for California, but Massachusetts has revealed what a compromise can look like.Health care politics have two warring theologies. There is the public-sector approach, as championed by Kuehl and many Democrats. They see government and its leverage in the marketplace as the only beast that can slay the rising costs of health care. Then there is the opposite solution, the private-sector approach, as advanced in various ways by Republican lawmakers. They see new coverage options, more private health savings accounts and less government interference in the marketplace as the keys to expanding care.So long as the political theologians stay in their respective camps, there is little chance for a deal. But Massachusetts showed that there is a stand to be taken in the middle.The new Massachusetts approach has something in it for everyone. The fans of relying on the private sector can point to how Massachusetts will allow private companies to keep buying private insurance for their employees. If the companies don't provide insurance, they will face a modest new tax (it is called a fee so as not to offend Republican sensibilities).As for those who prefer a bigger role for government, Massachusetts provides that, too. New quasi-government agencies (called "collectors") will use their leverage to negotiate for health coverage. The tax on companies will help subsidize the coverage for low-income residents. Everyone will be required to get coverage and prove it at tax time.Will it work? Who knows?At least California is positioned perfectly to learn from Massachusetts' mistakes. It was no blunder, however, to seek common ground to break the political gridlock.In California, there are few lawmakers as capable as Kuehl. She has only two more years in the Legislature until she is termed out. She would be ideal to lead a fresh look at bipartisan, revolutionary health care reform. Next year.Maybe.