Senate Republicans Announce “MI Health” Plan to Help Michigan’s 1.2 Million Uninsured
Michigan Senate Republicans recently unveiled a comprehensive plan that will help make health insurance in the state affordable and accessible for uninsured Michigan residents, according to Sen. Tom George, M.D., lead sponsor of the legislation.
George said the MI Health package is an innovative approach that provides consumer protections and has the potential to cover half of the more than 1.2 million uninsured people in the state.
“MI Health is a bridge for the working uninsured from government assistance to health care independence,” said George (R–Kalamazoo). “Importantly, it protects consumers from losing coverage if they get sick. It also includes a re-insurance mechanism that partially relieves Blue Cross Blue Shield of its burden.”
Central to the plan are its two programs to expand coverage for the uninsured. MI Access covers uninsured patients earning under 200 percent of the Federal Poverty Level , while MI Coverage protects those earning between 200 and 300 percent of that level.
MI Health is the result of a series of bipartisan workgroup meetings, in which AARP Michigan participated as a member of the Put Michigan First Coalition, commissioned by Senate Majority Leader Michael D. Bishop last winter and led by Sen. George, chairman of the Senate Health Policy Committee.
“The Senate Republican MI Health plan is about helping provide affordable, accessible health care to hundreds of thousands of Michigan residents,” Bishop said. “We will continue to seek the input and work together with experts in the health care field—the insurance carriers, the hospitals, physicians, Blue Cross Blue Shield, and Michigan business owners and job providers to develop the best plan.”
The workgroup held several meetings across the state over four months and consulted with numerous stakeholders in the health field, including: Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan; commercial carriers; health plans; physicians; hospitals; seniors; patients and consumers; disability advocates; business owners and job providers; unions; and the Office of Financial and Insurance Regulation.
Eric Schneidewind, state president of the AARP, spoke enthusiastically of the MI Health plan during a press conference at the state capitol on May 14, 2009.
“AARP’s top priority is making health care available to all Michigan citizens. Today’s announcement is a major step toward that goal,” said Schneidewind. “We want to thank Sen. George for his leadership in bringing stakeholders together over the last four months to work for a better health care system. We look forward to working with Sen. George in a bipartisan effort to provide quality health care at a cost that is affordable to our members.”
George said the focus of the Senate Republican MI Health plan is addressing the growing number of Michigan’s uninsured residents.
“The input of stakeholders was invaluable,” said George, one of two physicians in the Senate. “It led to a more carefully crafted proposal that works to address the needs of our residents. It will expand access to care while also encouraging individuals to participate in maintaining their own health.”
Senate Bills 579 – 582 have been referred to the Senate Health Policy Committee.
