proposal

The Federation of American Hospitals (FAH), a trade group representing investor-owned hospitals, has dipped its oar into the growing universal health debate with a proposal of its own. The FAH plan, dubbed "Health Coverage Passport," calls for a federal law requiring all Americans to have health coverage of some kind. Under the proposed rules, individuals would have to take employer-sponsored coverage where available, buy coverage on their own, or if eligible, take advantage of government …

Angering those who don't support its backbone--a doubled tobacco tax--Maryland lawmakers are going ahead with their proposal to cover more of the state's roughly 780,000 uninsured. The plan, which would double the state's tobacco tax to $2, would cover low income workers and subsidize small business coverage. The idea would be to bring far more poor residents into coverage plans, …

A group of Democratic state legislators are continuing their effort to pass legislation imposing a cigarette tax to fund a Medicaid expansion and drug treatment. Dubbed the "Healthy Maryland Initiative," the group plans to file a bill which would double the tax on cigarettes to $2 per pack. The tax should raise more than $200 million during the first year after inception, and roughly $170 million thereafter. The funds would help to bring coverage to the state's approximately 780,000 …

It's common, if not universal, for states to make drivers buy auto insurance, and most people are used to doing so. But forcing citizens to buy health insurance is much more controversial. That hasn't stopped Maryland regulators from floating a proposal to do just that, however, taking aim at the state's approximately 740,000 uninsured residents--a group which currently costs the state about $1.8 billion per year in direct costs. The Maryland Health Care Commission has drafted a plan …

With social media's rise to prominence, medical bloggers have developed a great deal of power. For that reason, it's critical that their work be on target, accurate and of use helping the healthcare industry move forward. But that won't happen on its own, suggests Dmitriy Kruglyak, publisher of The Medical Blog Network. That's why Kruglyak is leading the development of a new shared standard for medical blogging. The proposal, HealthTrain, The Open Healthcare …

Bustling Gwinnett Medical Center of Lawrenceville, GA has asked the state for permission to expand its bed capacity by 129 beds, or 43 percent over its currently licensed 300 beds. The $92-million proposal includes a five-story patient tower, and would take about three years to build. Officials say the emergency room is among the state's most hectic. Healthcare research firm Solucient has named Gwinnett the busiest medical center for its size in the country, a distinction it apparently …

San Francisco may soon become the first city to provide healthcare coverage to all its residents. A plan to cover its uninsured residents through the public health system was unanimously approved in preliminary vote. The proposed Health Access Plan, scheduled for a final vote next week, would offer preventive, primary and emergency care by hospitals and clinics in the city. Anyone seeking care would have the option of enrolling in the program and would pay a monthly fee on a sliding scale …

New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine (D) has abandoned a plan that would have imposed a bed-tax on hospitals in the state in the face of opposition from members of his own party. Corzine had hoped to raise at least $450 million through the proposal, which had been strenuously resisted by New Jersey hospitals.

- see this New York Times article

The American Medical Association ratified a proposal endorsing mandatory health insurance for individuals at its annual meeting on Tuesday. Members voted to back the idea of requiring people with annual incomes over $50,000 to purchase health insurance or face tax penalties. Under the scheme, low-income Americans would get tax-credits and subsidies. "The AMA just took a huge step toward supporting universal health care for all Americans," comments Dr. Jack Lewin of the California Medical …

And the plot thickens. At the first meeting of the Massachusetts group charged with implementing the state's ambitious insurance reform plan, a state official said that the best way of keeping the program's costs down would be to "restrict patient access to a limited number of hospitals." The Massachusetts Connector is charged with implementing Gov. Mitt Romney's plan to require that all state residents maintain health insurance. Under the proposal, insurers will play a major role in …