Elliott wants to require health insurance for some
28 02 08 - 12:07
Originally published February 28, 2008
By Meg Bernhardt
News-Post Staff
ANNAPOLIS -- Individuals making $50,000 or more would be required to buy health insurance or pay a fee, according to a bill proposed by a local delegate.
Delegate Donald Elliott, a Republican representing Frederick and Carroll counties, will present his bill today at a hearing before the House Health and Government Operations committee.
Elliott hopes to reduce the number of uninsured Maryland residents, who can rack up big hospital charges if they get sick or hurt and leave others to make up the difference.
"I do not think it a wise usage of the taxpayer dollar to subsidize health care for people having high incomes while other Marylanders struggle to maintain coverage by keeping their families insured," Elliott said.
At issue is Maryland's uncompensated care system, which allows hospitals to charge more to make up for people who are given medical treatments but don't have insurance or the ability to pay. As a result, insurance rates increase.
In fiscal 2007, the amount of uncompensated care paid for through hospital rates was $870 million. The state estimates 800,000 people are uninsured.
Elliott has proposed similar versions of the bill twice before, but it has not been successful. This year, he expects it will pass the House committee and is hopeful the Senate will look at it favorably as well.
In previous versions of the bill, the minimum income for insurance to be required was 500 percent of the federal poverty level, but Elliott changed it to a flat amount this year, comparable to that amount, because it will be easier for the Comptroller of Maryland to implement.
Under the bill, individuals making at least $50,000 a year or households making at least $100,000 a year would be required to have health insurance of some kind, even if it has a high deductible. High deductible plans tend to cost less.
Those who do not have health insurance will be charged $1,000 per person or $2,000 for a household.
The bill includes exceptions for those just entering the workforce, recently moving into the state, unemployed for a month or more, objecting on religious grounds or unable to obtain health insurance.
"I feel that people that can afford insurance should get insurance, and if not then they would be subject to a surcharge," Elliott said.
Analysts predict 75 percent of those who fall under the bill will buy insurance. The remaining 25 percent will simply pay the fee, he said.
The fee will be put in the Maryland Health Care Coverage Fund, which helps expand Medicaid coverage and assists employers in purchasing health insurance for their employees.
The Lewin Group, a consultant to the Maryland Health Care Commission, estimated in a recent study that a requirement for families making more than 400 percent of the federal poverty level will result in a 15 percent reduction in the number of uninsured.