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Senate Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
Senate of Pennsylvania
Session of 2017 - 2018
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | September 28, 2017 12:37 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Senator Art Haywood |
| To: | All Senate members |
| Subject: | Everybody's Covered |
| In the near future I will introduce commonsense legislation that will cover everybody for healthcare services in the Commonwealth. The state of our nation’s healthcare is increasingly unstable and it is our citizens who are paying the price for our inability to progress. In Pennsylvania, there are more than 800,000 individuals without coverage. The health care system is inefficient with unnecessary administrative costs. It is time to fix our broken health care system. My legislation will eliminate multiple billing processes and ensure everyone is covered. Doctor’s visits, hospitalizations, prescription drugs, and other medically necessary or preventative care will be available without charge. The Pennsylvania Health Care Agency would serve as the single payer for over 80 percent of medical expenses in the state, saving money by simultaneously simplifying and streamlining health coverage. This all ensures the doctor-patient relationship will remain just that - between the doctor and the patient. Overall, this legislation will provide quality care to all 12.7 million Pennsylvania citizens while also reducing inefficiencies in healthcare administration and consumer delivery services. For those wanting more coverage, individuals can buy supplemental coverage similar to Medicare supplemental insurance plans. This is not government-run healthcare; it is government-paid healthcare. An individual’s doctor will have more control over a patient’s care by cutting out the middlemen in private insurance companies, private prescription drug coverage clinical panels and billing errors preventing access. A 2014 economic impact study by the University of Massachusetts at Amherst assessed total overall healthcare costs in Pennsylvania – from state, employer, individual and other sources – at approximately $147 billion. A single-payer healthcare system in Pennsylvania, per the study, would address the inefficiencies in the current system, reducing overall spending by 11 percent, with savings of more than $17 billion, or an average $1,000 per resident. A single-payer system can substantially benefit those who are in most need of it. Those who fall within the bottom 20 percent income bracket would see a yearly savings of $1,900 on personal healthcare spending compared to the current system. Getting everybody covered will cost $130 billion per year and save $17 billion per year. The costs are paid by a 10% slate payroll tax and a 3% increase in income tax. Even here, these taxes will amount to cost savings. Conservatively, employers pay on average about 13% of personnel costs on health care now, so 10% will provide a net savings. Likewise, even with the increased income tax, individuals will no longer need to pay out-of-pocket expenses, saving the average resident $1,000 a year. Please join me in delivering quality of life to every Pennsylvanian. |
Introduced as SB1014