California Individual And Group Health Insurance Plans

U-Wire - Sept. 27: Los Angeles - With 47 days left before the California gubernatorial election, Democratic nominee Phil Angelides spoke out Wednesday on the way Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has dealt with health care in California, pledging to enact legislation to increase statewide health care as governor and calling the issue the most glaring injustice of the Bush-Schwarzenegger era. "As governor, I will ensure that no more than 10 percent of health care premiums a healthy margin of a dime on every dollar goes back to the HMOs," Angelides said. "I will cut health care costs for more than 12 million Californians by $4 billion a year, out of the pockets of the HMOs and back into the pockets of hardworking Californians." The issue of health care has long been a bone of contention between Schwarzenegger and Angelides. While it is only now becoming heated in the gubernatorial campaign, with Angelides giving by far his most powerful and stabbing speeches yet, the state treasurer said the issue is nothing new. "I've been battling Governor Schwarzenegger on this issue since the day he took office," Angelides said Wednesday. "I fought for legislation to cover all children, and as governor I pledge to enact it when I get into office. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed it. I sided by the employees of large corporations that refused to offer health care; Arnold Schwarzenegger fought and ultimately killed legislation to ensure them coverage. "I supported legislation requiring health plans to provide the basic dignity of maternity coverage and Arnold Schwarzenegger sided with the insurers and vetoed it. And when two huge HMO mergers came before the state, proposing to pour $1 billion into the pockets of top executives and inevitably jacking up the cost for families, I fought hard to block the merger. Arnold Schwarzenegger simply heeded the siren call of the HMOs and said more corporate profits sound like a health care policy to me." The Schwarzenegger campaign questioned Wednesday whether Angelides has the credibility to make such statements, citing previous instability in his stance on health care. "Just like on taxes, public safety and pay-to-play politics, Phil Angelides has a credibility problem on health care because he can't explain his record," Schwarzenegger spokesman Matt David said Wednesday night. David said Angelides had the chance to enact health care change six years ago and voted against it, leaving the Schwarzenegger campaign with three main questions of his credibility. "One is why has Angelides been known to turn down health-care proposals when unions have been at odds over the issues and tried to pass them when the (Service Employees International Union) was in favor of it? "Two is that we are wondering how he can criticize the governor for accepting campaign contributions from HMOs when he's accepted $160,000 himself. "And three is that we are wondering how he can endorse universal health care but not outwardly support (State Sen.) Sheila Kuehl's proposal for it, which he said he won't comment on." The Schwarzenegger campaign also noted the governor's promise to sign the California Prescription Drug Initiative in coming weeks, as well as a statistic that 90 percent of all those eligible are taking advantage of Healthy Families, a low-cost insurance program for children and teens. Angelides, however, drew notice to statistics that say California is not as well off as it could be. He referenced health-care premiums rising four times the cost of inflation and the average cost of family coverage by more than $10,000 per year. He said for seven years in a row, insurance premiums have been raised more than the cost of care. Additionally, the seven biggest HMOs have tripled their profits in the last five years, Angelides said. "In California alone, $11 billion in premiums is now being kept by the HMOs and not being used for health care itself. No wonder 6.8 million Californians are without health insurance nearly 15 percent of the 46 million Americans without health care."