Governor Crist's Cover Florida Health Care Plan
Posted Jun 5, 2008 @ 7:23 pm, Viewed by 2671 Visitors, Read 2868 Times.Who says conservatives won't do anything about health care. Surely not Florida Republican Governor Charlie Crist. He succeeded in getting his new and innovative health insurance reform plan through the state legislature that even the Democrats are having a hard time finding anything to complain about. With the State of Florida having nearly 21% of its population being uninsured, the "Cover Florida" plan should help uninsured Floridians by offering a variety of affordable health care insurance coverage plans.
The reform allows insurance providers to sell no-frills policies exempted from the more than 50 mandates Florida currently imposes. Those mandates were put in place without any regard for how much they cost consumers. The big problem is that with mandates in place for things like acupuncture or infertility treatments, most folks just can't afford the policies. Governor Crist recognized that these types of state regulations increase the cost of health coverage, and thus boldly decided to do away with many of them.
The new benefit packages are expected to be introduced next year and will include a minimum coverage for primary care plus catastrophic coverage for major illnesses. The hope is they will cost as little as $150 a month and be a blessing to the 3.8 million people in the state currently without any health care coverage at all.
While the Cover Florida plan will enroll only people who have gone without coverage for at least six months, it will also include small business owners so they may offer coverage to their employees offering a variety of policies. Governor Crist believes that "given the choice, consumers will choose policies that cover some services but not others" rather than continue to go without any coverage for themselves or their families.
Detractors are already crying foul. As expected, they say that without mandates, the plans won't provide for a quality of care. However, it does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that of the 1,900 specific coverage obligations many states have imposed, most are the result of intense lobbying efforts by health care providers, not from consumers themselves. Somehow, we don't think people will much care whether or not they have coverage for every possible situation if it means they can get some help in covering their out of pocket costs when their kids get sick. Quite frankly, it is a no brainer that most politicians just can't come to grips with.
Governor Crist should be applauded for this move. Perhaps, if other Governors across this country would take notice of this accomplishment, more people would be allowed to benefit from the concept of consumer choice too.
Gulf Coast Associates, Realtors & Metro Mortgage Company
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Gulf Coast Associates is a private real estate firm specializing in SW Florida Real Estate. Benjamin Dona is the Broker-Owner. He and his wife Terry, an underwriter with 20 years experience, also own a federally-regulated mortgage banking firm, Metro Mortgage Company.
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This plan sounds great if actually implemented. I was once a corporate auditor for two different firms in California, and the "mandated" health insurance coverage requirements like acupuncture and chiropractors greatly increased our costs. I looked into dumping them, and found that a larger company (over 1500 employees) could "self insure" and by doing so, exclude many of the non-priority health services added to standard coverages by lobbyists. Every state needs a cafeteria type plan where the employer (and even the client) can pick and choose. For instance, why should a single person or senior be forced to pay inflated premiums for a rate that includes maternity and baby birth services. The health insurance for parents having babies should not be subsidized by everyone who is "not eligible" for the coverage. A cafeteria plan is more democratic, where each client gets the same dollar budget, and they decide which coverages they want. That is what we all need.
VJ