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Ask Joe Canciamilla to Stand Up for Healthcare
A bill to protect people from medical debt and unaffordable health care (AB2281, Chan) will move to the Assembly floor NEXT WEEK. Insurance companies have made killing this bill their NUMBER ONE priority this year, and they are aggressively lobbying moderate Democrats in the Assembly.
Joe Canciamilla abstained in the vote on a companion bill (AB977) sponsored by Health Access last year, in the face of heavy lobbying by the insurance industry - please ask him to vote YES on AB 2281!
High-deductible health insurance is a way for the insurance industry to take themselves off the hook for health care, making people pay more up front in order to discourage people from seeking care. Even though patients are paying premiums for these plans, they still face high medical costs - leading to staggering medical debt and even bankruptcy. That's why even Sutter Hospital has joined with Health Access and a broad coalition of health and consumer advocates to support AB 2281.
Discouraging people from seeking primary & preventive care is the wrong way to go on health care reform!
Insurers are saying that high deductible plans make health insurance more affordable for employers: we need to make sure Asm. Canciamilla understands what high deductibles mean to low-wage workers - NO PREVENTIVE HEALTH CARE & MEDICAL DEBT!
A YES vote on AB2281 will cap deductibles at $5,250 for an individual or $10,500 for a family, and give people more information to compare providers. The real reason insurers want to sell high deductibles so badly is that they have extremely high profit margins; in fact, the Insurance Commissioner is holding a hearing on profit margins for high deductible health plans on June 1 in Los Angeles.
We need your help -- please EMAIL or FAX your support for AB 2281 to Joe Canciamilla today, and forward this ALERT to anyone who has medical debt, or cares about reining in the abuses of the health insurance industry.
| Sample Letter for Campaign |
Subject: Re: AB 2281: Strong Support
Dear [ Decision Maker ] ,
I strongly support AB2281 (Chan), which would provide consumer protections for those with high deductible health plans.
I am concerned that high deductible health plans are being used to shift the burden of the cost of health care onto individual consumers, and deter people from seeking necessary care.
Deductibles can soar into the tens of thousands of dollars. And despite those that argue for high deductible health plans, consumers have no real way to compare and "shop around" for medical services.
A health insurance policy with a $10,000 deductible may appear more affordable for an employer but for a worker making $20,000 a year or even $40,000 a year it's a recipe for homelessness and bankruptcy. I support AB2281 because it is outrageous that so-called health insurance policies are sold in this state with even higher out of pocket costs.
What good is a health insurance policy where the out of pocket maximums exceed half the family's income?
AB 2281 would greatly relieve the burden and uncertainty associated with high-deductible health plans.
Sincerely,
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Campaign Launched:
May 25, 2006
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AB 2281 (Chan)
High Deductible Health Plans: Consumer Protections
Fact Sheet
PURPOSE
Establishes protections for consumers in response to the trend of health coverage products with high deductibles, sometimes referred to as High Deductible Health Plans (HDHPs). HDHPs are growing in the marketplace, billed as an affordable coverage option. More and more employers are offering these plans, some as the only health insurance choice. For many consumers, however, the coverage is an illusion, because when they really need it, they can't afford to pay their share of the costs. Unchecked, HDHPs are not an affordable option for working families, lower income individuals or the chronically ill.
SUMMARY
- Limits annual out-of-pocket expenses (deductibles, copayments, coinsurance, and other amounts, not including premiums) to $5,250 for an individual and $10,500 for a family.
- Requires DMHC and CDI to jointly develop by July 2007 a consumer guide on health coverage with deductibles.
- Applies to health plans regulated by the Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC) and insurers regulated by the California Department of Insurance (CDI).
EXISTING LAW
There are currently no limits on the level of consumer cost sharing that can be sold as health insurance.
The Knox-Keene Act regulating health plans under DMHC establishes minimum basic benefits, requires plan contracts to cover all medically necessary basic services and requires health plans to assume full financial risk, giving DMHC some authority to review and revise plan benefits and limit cost sharing to some extent. By contrast, CDI has no meaningful authority to set limits on out-of-pocket costs or require minimum basic benefits.
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