Good for Florida labor and civic groups that began a campaign Tuesday in Tallahassee to put universal health care on the radar screen in the presidential and congressional races. With 3.8 million Floridians having no health coverage, the nation's third-highest rate of uninsured, it's a crisis that's rightly a top issue with Sunshine State voters -- and should be for candidates too.That includes state lawmakers who have the responsibility to scrutinize Florida's newly created low-cost no-frills health insurance program, touted by Gov. Charlie Crist as a way to open the door to affordable medical care. The program is supposed to cost about $150 a month and be available for anyone has been without insurance for at least six months.
Last week the governor started soliciting bids from insurers interested in offering the bargain-rate plans, but details remain uncertain. Depending on what deals the state cuts -- such as caps set on care, what's not covered, and how high deductibles and co-pays can go -- the cheap policies could be little more than window dressing. Insurers shouldn't be allowed to rip the guts out of coverage with extremely limited benefits that deny seriously ill patients the treatment they need. And, at best, the no-frills plans should serve merely as a step toward universal, comprehensive coverage for all hardworking families -- similar to that Florida lawmakers get at taxpayers' expense.
news source : http://www.floridatoday.com/
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