Though he says he'll give everyone full details in January, to date Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell has been a bit coy when it comes to his proposal for providing universal healthcare in the state. However, a picture of Rendell's plans is beginning to emerge. In an effort to cover 1 million uninsured state residents, it appears that Rendell will develop a program based on a previous expansion he proposed for the state's Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). The CHIP expansion would subsidize health insurance for low-income families, while providing insurance to other families on an income-based sliding scale. Rendell also plans to target hospital infection control as a cost-reduction mechanism, and removing some restrictions on the ability of nurse practitioners to treat patients. Rendell's recommendations arise from an ongoing research process funded by a $900,000 federal planning grant.
For more information on the Pennsylvania plan:
- read this article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette