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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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State
Rep. John Siptroth
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Siptroth votes to extend insurance program to thousands more
HARRISBURG, June 29 – State Rep. John Siptroth, D-Monroe-Pike, today voted for a bill (H.B. 1) that would expand Pennsylvania's adultBasic health insurance program and improve the program.
The bill now goes to the state Senate for consideration.
"This program is vital to my legislative district," said Siptroth, who co-sponsored the bill. "The state Insurance Department has estimated there are more than 23,000 people ages 19 to 64 in Monroe and Pike counties without health insurance."
Siptroth also noted that the consumer-oriented health care organization Families USA has found that the hidden surcharge to provide care to the uninsured is $1,017 per year per insured family.
"That's money coming out of the pocketbooks of employers and families," he said.
Based on data collected in late 2007 and early 2008 by Market Decisions LLC, the state Insurance Department has estimated Pennsylvania had 877,927 uninsured adults ages 19-64, including more than 16,895, in Monroe County and 6,267 in Pike County.
House Bill 1 would expand the number of adultBasic enrollees and add benefits including prescription medications, chronic disease management, preventative and wellness care, and behavioral health care.
Siptroth noted that by adding prescription drug and behavioral health coverage, H.B. 1 makes adultBasic more cost-effective in managing disease and illness and ensures the program qualifies for federal funding to the tune of 54 cents on the dollar.
To be eligible for adultBasic coverage under H.B. 1, a person would have to:
· earn less than 200 percent of the federal poverty level;
· be a Pennsylvania resident at the time of application and a legal resident of the United States;
· not have insurance or have been insured for the six months immediately preceding application;
· not be eligible for Medicare; and
· be between 19 and 64 years of age.
House Bill 1 is a central component of Health PAct, the House Democrats' package of bills aimed at reforming the state's health-care system.
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