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Published by Topanga Messenger.
On Friday, May 15, 2009, the Topanga Peace Alliance (TPA) and the Progressive Democrats of the Santa Monica Mountains (PDSMM) co-sponsored an educational forum on Senate Bill 810, the California Universal Health Care Act, re-introduced this year by State Senator Mark Leno (D).
Pleased with the turnout of an estimated 150 people, Julie Levine, President of the TPA, said the turnout for this event was significant, both in terms of numbers and the new people reached. "We reached out to people we knew who had questions or concerns about universal single-payer coverage. Our efforts were to reach beyond the choir and help build an awareness that the decisions being made now will affect our future healthcare and quality of life," said Levine.
The meeting opened with remarks from Levine and PDSMM President Dorothy Reik. The panelists were Jo Olson, M.D., assistant professor of pediatrics at USC with a full-time practice in adolescent medicine at Children's Hospital Los Angeles; emergency medicine doctor Matt Hendrickson, a member of Physicians for a National Health Program; and Mark Leland, who championed Sheila Kuehl's work on SB 840, an identical bill (formerly SB 921) that was vetoed by Gov. Schwarzeneger in 2006.
After presenting brief introductions, the panelists sat for a lengthy and spirited question-and-answer period. Many shared insurance horror stories, while others nodded along in knowing agreement.
Billed as a "growing grassroots movement" SB 810 guarantees healthcare coverage for all California residents. Based on residency alone, every Californian is eligible and every Californian is covered. There are no pre-existing condition exclusions. Recognizing that current healthcare coverage varies greatly from policy to policy, "your comprehensive care [under the plan] will be excellent," stated Leland, more comparable to excellent group coverage as opposed to the typical marginal coverage provided by individual policies.
In 2005, the Lewin Group provided a 116-page independent analysis of SB 921 (identical to SB 810), and found "the program's benefits package covers a broader range of services than are now covered under many health plans, [including] medically appropriate hospital inpatient and outpatient care, emergency room visits, physician services (including preventive care), prescription drugs, lab tests, mental health and substance abuse treatment, eyeglasses and other services. The program would also cover home health and adult daycare services for the aged and/or disabled. Dental care would be covered along with vision and hearing exams. It would not cover cosmetic surgery, some orthodontia and private hospital rooms (unless medically necessary)."
Often criticized as socialized medicine, the panel explained that the plan is anything but that. "The government will not be training any doctors. There will be no more increases of premiums. No conditions will be denied," stated Mark Leland. Further refuting critics, Senator Leno has been quoted as saying, "It is not socialized medicine. Your doctor doesn't change. Your hospital doesn't change. Your clinic doesn't change. The only thing that changes is who pays."
So who does pay? Senator Leno's fact sheet on SB 810 states that "under the Act everyone--individuals, employers and government pays something in and everyone gets healthcare." Administered by the State of California, the plan is funded through payroll taxes. Hendrickson stated, "The end of the health insurance industry as we know it is at hand."
According to healthcareforall.org, the system would be funded from several sources. All federal and state money that already goes to health care (about 30 percent of health care expenditures) would be deposited into the Health Insurance Fund. California residents would pay a health insurance premium when filing their state tax return in proportion to their income. California businesses would pay an employer premium in proportion to their wages--as they do now. The employee percentage is a modest 3.78 percent. There is a floor on taxable income of $7,000 and a ceiling on taxable income of $200,000 for each of these taxes. "If we keep going the way we are, health care premiums will exceed annual income by 2025," Leland said. Already "Forty-one percent of Americans report some debt or bill problems" due to healthcare costs and "the number one cause of bankruptcy in this country is medical bills. Sixty percent of those had private insurance when the illness began," said Leland.
The panelists discussed the fact that current healthcare costs are far more than the cost of the premium. There are deductibles, co-payments, and other out-of-pocket costs which would be eliminated under this bill and would result in a "vast overall savings" for most Californians.
"Healthcare is not a commodity," said Olson. "When you make health care a commodity, you set the stage for fearmongering. Why? Because it is profit-driven. It makes perfect sense: if you're doing hips, you're going to make someone think they really need a new hip! It's not toothpaste. It's not a car. It's not Nikes. Healthcare is not a commodity and it is not okay [that it is treated as one]," said Olson. "It is just barbaric the way it works right now. It is ridiculous," she said.
The plan will also drastically decrease physician and hospital overhead because "they will only be responsible for filling out a single billing form to the state rather than thousands of forms for thousands of insurers... [additionally], all patients will be insured so physicians will no longer be practicing uncompensated care with the exception of medical procedures which are deemed [medically] unnecessary," said Matt Hendrickson.
The Lewin Group analysis found that "a major portion of physician administrative costs can be traced to the differing coverage and reimbursement rules used by insurers. Insurers often have different rules concerning covered services, service bundling, documentation requirements, and allowable reimbursement levels. Physicians and their staff devote substantial amounts of time to appeals and adjudication of denied claims and reduced levels of reimbursement. Some physicians also devote substantial amounts of time to establishing and negotiating selective contracting arrangements with insurers...based upon interviews with industry analysts, we assume that these activities would be reduced by about two-thirds under the program...we also estimate that physician general administrative costs would be reduced by about 25 percent due to the elimination of selective contracting negotiations."
Physician incomes might actually be better says Leland. "[Doctors] will have time to treat more patients by not having to decipher the paperwork for each of California's 6000 different insurance plans and will not have to pay such high malpractice premiums. Plus, they will receive their payments much quicker as they will be electronically hooked up to the single payer. Up until the 21st century doctors were against single payer," but now that they see how insurance companies make the decisions, more and more physicians are coming out in support of it, he said.
In an email response to the Messenger, Reik said, "it is single PAYER, not single PROVIDER-the government will not provide the service, just pay for it -doctors will decide on treatment, not some insurance company employee whose bonus depends on how many claims he/she can turn down."
SB 810 has passed in the Senate and is now in the Assembly Appropriations Committee. The TPA and PDSSM strongly encourage you to support SB 810 by signing the petition supporting it and lobbying the governor's office as well. Leland said, "What is really going to help is if you sign the petition." Leland said the goal of the grass-roots movement is to educate people to be able to explain single payer "one-on-one, face-to-face" to those who have questions. "It's up to us to do this," said Reik. "It is a people's movement. Unless the people demand it, it's not going to happen," said Olson.
For more information, visit www.healthcareforall.org (which contains the entire Lewin report), www.onecarenow.org, or Senator Leno's official website at www.dist03.casen.govoffice.com.
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