[NPInfo] Illinois doctors group reject plan..........

[mmhelgert46 at comcast.net]

I especially like the statement by the physicians whether this plan would be: "financially sound for doctors".  These guys are getting it out there what their real concerns are...money.  Though (you got to love 'em") they've made some concessions............."like (wanting) to truly improve access for all Illinois residents".........of course with the money part in place....let us not forget about the money ....always the most important thing.....hats off to the Illinois State Medical Society for some concessions.........





Illinois doctors group rejects plan
By Adam Jadhav
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
05/04/2007

Illinois' foremost doctors group gave a thumbs-down Thursday to Gov. Rod Blagojevich's sweeping health care reform plan and the new statewide corporate tax that he would use to pay for it.

The Illinois State Medical Society, a politically powerful association of 13,000 physicians statewide, said it still supported the idea of universal health care, just not the governor's plan.

Blagojevich's proposal, dubbed "Illinois Covered," stops short of mandating insurance for all but attempts to cover gaps.

If fully enacted, it would extend Medicaid to all adults below the federal poverty line and offer a new line of state insurance to potentially tens of thousands of working families.


It would also provide subsidies to many people who purchase insurance privately or receive it through work.

The plan would require all insurance companies to offer coverage to anyone who wants it, and force businesses to either pay something for insurance or pay additional taxes.

To cover the program's estimated multibillion dollar price tag, Blagojevich is pushing a new gross receipts tax — to replace corporate income taxes — on all companies with annual sales of more than $2 million.

The health care package, part of a massive budget proposal that also includes funds for school and road construction, has been contentious since it was announced.

With some health care and education activists behind him, Blagojevich has promised "Armageddon" with a skeptical Legislature.

The loss of support from the state's medical society comes as a blow when support for the overall plan is already mixed. The doctor's group said it would readily support universal health care if Blagojevich made significant changes.

"We commend Gov. Blagojevich for jump-starting this important debate," said the medical society's president, Dr. Rodney Osborn. "Illinois doctors want a plan that can truly improve health care access for all Illinois residents. We stand ready to work with him to strengthen Illinois Covered toward meeting that goal."

The governor's office said Wednesday that officials had had multiple discussions with the physicians group that resulted in some concessions — including some increases in what state insurance would pay doctors. Justin DeJong, a spokesman for the governor's Office of Management and Budget, said the plan would result overall in some $400 million in revenue for doctors, according to estimates.

"It's unfortunate the medical society is unwilling to join other physician groups in endorsing changes to a system that's clearly failing," DeJong said.

The governor says Illinois Covered, as well as the tax that would fund it, would help the average resident who struggled to get by.

In repeated stump speeches around the state, Blagojevich has railed against corporations, casting them as greedy scofflaws unwilling to shoulder their part of Illinois' income tax burden.

State figures show many large corporations pay little to no corporate tax, because of loopholes and credits.

But the plan has met with a critical response in some sectors. Many legislators, including several Metro East area Democrats and most Republicans, have said they oppose the gross receipts tax, which would raise an estimated $7.6 billion dollars a year. Many businesses also oppose the tax plan, saying the gross receipts tax is unfair and would force them to either pack up and move or pass the additional cost on to consumers.

The governor does have some have powerful supporters, including state Senate President Emil Jones, D-Chicago, as well as the Illinois Hospital Association. Locally the plans have the endorsement of the United Congregations of Metro East and some municipal and county politicians.

Supporters say the reduction in the rolls of uninsured would benefit the state at large. Last month, Ken Thorpe, a professor of health policy at Emory University, said the plan would actually save families and businesses almost $9 billion over four years through reduced insurance premium growth.

But the state medical society offered up multiple concerns, many over whether the plan would be financially sound for doctors. The group takes issue with the tax plan as well as a requirement that physicians must accept the new state insurance.

Physicians also said they feared the payment rates of the new state insurance would be too low. Many doctors already criticize the level and timeliness of Medicaid payments from the state.

A governor's spokeswoman, Abby Ottenhoff said negotiations could continue, and the medical society said it remained hopeful.

The medical society "believes these concerns can be successfully resolved," Osborn said. "Doing so right away will make the plan stronger, more viable over the long run, and ensure patients have real access to care."

Adam.Jadhav at post-dispatch.com

618-659-3637
spacer