SB 840 Creates $42 Billion Of New Debt And Calls For Rationing Of Health Care
July 15, 2008
Contact: Nicole Kasabian Evans
Statement from Christopher Ohman, President/CEO, California Association of Health Plans
"Government-run health care does nothing to curb the skyrocketing cost of medical care, which is the root cause of our health care funding crisis. Rather, SB 840 would create a vast new government bureaucracy that would put the state $42 billion in debt in its first year.
"We need to find a better way to ensure everyone has access to health care than raising taxes on employees and employers by 16 percent. Who can sustain such a tax increase when so many are facing home foreclosures and gas and grocery prices that are through the roof?
"Not only will singly payer health care break the bank, but under their system, when costs spiral out of control, our access to health care will be controlled by the government. The legislation calls for cut backs on the amount of care we will be allowed to receive, raising co-pays and withholding payment to doctors for their services.
"SB 840 calls for the creation of a vast new government bureaucracy that includes 10 new state departments. Now the people who brought us the DMV will be calling the shots on our health care."
Tomorrow, Senator Sheila Kuehl will present her bill, SB 840, before the Assembly Appropriations Committee. This will be the final presentation of the bill for this session.
CAHP is a statewide trade association representing 39 full-service health plans. Through legislative advocacy, education and collaboration with other member organizations, CAHP works to sustain a strong environment in which our member plans can provide access to products that offer choice and flexibility to the more than 24 million members they serve. For more information, please visit www.calhealthplans.org or call (916) 552-2910.
For media inquiries, please contact Nicole Kasabian Evans, our Vice President of Communications, via e-mail (nevans@calhealthplans.org) or at 916.552.2914.
