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Jersey exploring health insurance
State eyes way to mandate universal coverage, like Mass.
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
BY BETH FITZGERALD
Star-Ledger Staff

New Jersey officials say they will explore ways to follow the lead of Massachusetts, which last week adopted the nation's first universal health insurance law.

Assemblyman Neil Cohen (D- Union) said yesterday he and Sen. Joseph Vitale (D-Middlesex) will spend the next six months meeting with employers, consumer groups, health insurance firms, hospitals, physicians, drug firms and other stakeholders to determine whether some version of the Massachusetts plan could work in New Jersey.

The law, signed last week by Gov. Mitt Romney, requires people who don't have health insurance to buy it by July 1, 2007. Employers with 11 or more employees would pay $295 a year, per employee, if the company doesn't provide insurance.

But Massachusetts has fewer than 600,000 uninsured -- well below Cohen's estimate of 1.3 million for New Jersey's -- and it's be lieved that Massachusetts has funds in place to cover the cost of the new mandate for at least the next two years.

"The toughest piece in the Mas sachusetts law is that it requires everyone to have health insurance, the same way we now require everyone with a car to have auto insurance," Cohen said. "This is going to take a lot of research and a lot of work.

"We know there are people who can't afford insurance right now, under any circumstances; there are undocumented immigrants whose names and addresses we don't even have. What is the cost, and how will the cost be borne?"

Cohen said New Jersey might consider exempting employers with 15, or 30 or even 50 workers, or perhaps use a gross revenue threshold instead.

Government subsidies would be needed to buy insurance for many of those who can't afford it now, but Cohen said taxpayers spend about $600 million a year to compensate hospitals for treating uninsured patients. "Some of those funds could be used to provide a coverage plan for the uninsured," he said.

The prospect of New Jersey tak ing a cue from Massachusetts drew a generally favorable response from several statewide business groups.

"It's a fantastic idea -- it makes sure that everyone has some responsibility in the health insurance game, and that is long overdue," said Jim Leonard, vice president for government relations at the state Chamber of Commerce. "Forcing people to take a responsible role in purchasing insurance will lead to reform, whether it's cost reform or system changes that make the system work better."

He cited a study a few years ago that found 356,000 of the uninsured had income of $50,000 or more; 200,000 were between jobs and temporarily uninsured, and 265,000 were eligible for government health plans and weren't taking advan tage of them. A key goal is getting everyone covered, "because then everyone has skin in the game, and everyone will be forced to pay attention to health insurance -- to the cost and to what is driving costs."

Phil Kirschner, president of the New Jersey Business & Industry Association, said the Massachu setts plan holds promise, though it doesn't attack the cost of health care.

"It's easy to say we're going to cover people, but what we have seen so far in the legislative response is an avoidance of the cost issue," he said.

Vitale, who chairs the state Senate health committee, said, "The goal is some form of universal health-insurance product where business, employee and government share in a partnership."
He said the state-and federally funded FamilyCare program that provides health coverage to 139,000 working poor parents and 112,000 children could be a model for how universal insurance would work.


Beth Fitzgerald covers small business. She may be reached at efitzge rald@starledger.com or (973) 392-4111.



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