California Health Care: Bill's Co-Author Votes Against It

What a long, strange trip it's been for health care reform in California. After a yearlong effort ABX1-1, the health care bill backed by California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez, has been voted down. The Senate Health Committee delivered a coup de grace in the form of a 7-1 vote against the measure, including a nay vote from Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata (D – Oakland) who originally co-authored the measure.

Rhonda Rundle at the Wall Street Journal talks about the factors that lead to this turnaround (page A9 if you prefer hardcopy):

Support began to erode in the senate as the outlines of the state's $14 billion budget deficit came into focus late last year.

Last week, the Legislature's nonpartisan fiscal analyst raised questions about funding for the package, further undermining its prospects. Lawmakers who had been leaning in favor of the negotiated bill began backing away in the face of uncertainty about how the state could enact an ambitious new program at a time of fiscal crisis when the governor has proposed cutting funds for established health-care programs.

ABC News 10, a California news station that covers Sacramento and the surrounding areas, brings us the view from the Chair as reported by Ayesha Thomas:

Committee Chair Shiela Kuehl said there isn't enough money to fund the program.

"There's insufficient funding there for so called subsidies, there's insufficient money there to cover the expanded Medi-Cal coverage," said Kuehl.

"If the headline is Health Committee kills reform, that's an erroneous headline. But we'll live with it...The right headline is Senate Health Committee does not pass bad bill," Kuehl added.

There's more where that came from. The News 10 article ends with a transcription of Gov. Schwarzenegger's Statement in response to the vote.

Since this is a California issue a visit to Brian Katz's blog is order. As usual Mr. Katz delivers the goods, this time in the form of this quote from Senator Perata explaining his decision:

In a letter to Governor Schwarzenegger and Speaker Nunez, Senator Perata wrote, “This bill – which is before the Senate, and the initiative, which is not – would create the third-largest program in state government, surpassed only by K-12 education and Medi-Cal. Under any circumstances, but especially in light of the state’s $14.5 billion budget shortfall, we have the fiduciary responsibility to approve a health care coverage plan that is both self financing and fiscally sound and a moral responsibility to protect from harm those who already have health care coverage.”

Mr. Katz provides our summation today, as he has stated it so eloquently.

The defeat of ABX1-1 is no cause for celebration. The reality is, while the health care system works well for many in the state, serious problems exist that need to be addressed. With the defeat of ABX1-1, pressure for change will continue to build. Lawmakers may succumb to the pressure to pass anything in order to have passed something.

SOURCE: "Health-Care Bill Fails to Pass" 01/29/08
SOURCE: "Key Committee Rejects Schwarzenegger's Health Reform Effort" 01/29/08
photo courtesy of d_vdm, used under this Creative Commons license

San Francisco Health Insurance Mandate gets Green Light from 9th Circuit Court

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals is allowing the City of San Francisco to move forward with its new health care plan despite the recent ruling of the U.S. Federal District Court. A few weeks ago Judge Jeffrey White ruled that the funding component of the plan violated The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA)

Bob Egelko at the San Francisco Chronicle offers a simple summation in his analysis of the situation:

That provision requires large and medium-size companies to offer insurance to their employees or pay a fee to the city for the cost of their coverage. The court said the city probably would win its argument that U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White was wrong when he ruled Dec. 26 that local governments lack the power to force employers to contribute to a health care program. [...]

The law was challenged by the Golden Gate Restaurant Association, which represents more than 900 Bay Area establishments. Dan Scherotter, the association's incoming president, said the restaurants were disappointed but would comply with the ruling and remained confident of winning after the court hears all the evidence.

Avoidable suffering was cited by Judge Williams Fletcher as a reason for the 3-0 decision. According to Egelko's article the case has been prioritized and final written arguments are due this April with a possible decision this year.

For more detail on this topic I would advise reading the primer on the case posted yesterday on the Alan Katz Health Care Reform Blog. As usual Mr. Katz included a number of useful sources including a link to the actual court decision and some thoughts concerning the ramifications of this decision for California's proposed statewide health care plan (ABX1-1).

ABX1-1 and its companion ballot initiative create a similar funding mechanism at the state level. Opponents of the legislation claim it, too, violates ERISA. This decision undermines the argument of those critics.

Or as Speaker Nunez put it in a statement issued by his office today, in what can be considered the political equivalent of a running back's victory dance in the end zone, "Opponents of health care reform now have one less rubber arrow in their quiver as they try to stop our historic effort to fix the broken system and make health care more affordable and accessible to the people of California."

Only time will tell what impact the precedents set in this case will have on the reform of health care across the nation. One thing is certain: no matter what the final decision is, it will have a far-reaching ripple effect.

SOURCE: "Ninth Circuit Allows SF Health Plan to Go Forward" 01/09/08
SOURCE: "Appeals court allows S.F. to enforce health care law" 10/10/08
photo courtesy of tinkerroll21, used under this Creative Commons license

New Year's Health Care Reform Roundup

Welcome to our first health care news roundup of 2008! Most of the health care news lately has been about the politics of reform. From mandates in Massachusetts to the floor of the California State Capitol there is no lack of news on the subject. With that in mind we would like to share a small sampling of health care in the media as we end the first week of the New Year.

Lets start in Iowa, the land of the caucus. CNN brings us text and video about Kathy Strangli, an Iowa voter who is dying of an incurable lung disease called lymphangioleiomyomatosis. She is devoting her final days to changing U.S. health care and has been grilling candidates on the subject across the state of Iowa to do it. So far she has confronted all but two presidential hopefuls on the subject and has attended more than 70 campaign events to do so.
[Story] [Video]

Next stop is California, a state that has held a high profile in the news as Governor Schwarzenegger and the state legislature have wrestled with implementing universal healthcare. Aliza Marcus over at Bloomberg takes a good hard look at Schwarzenegger's battle for health care reform and the lessons it holds for U.S. Presidential candidates.
[Story]

Then we turn our attention to the East Coast of the U.S. The Business Review brings us the scoop on New York Governor Eliot Spitzer's decree to his Health Commissioner and his Insurance Superintendent that they have until May 31 to concoct a plan for universal coverage in New York state.
[Story]

As we move along the coast we find the Boston Globe reporting on Vermont Governor Jim Douglas who is aiming his efforts at preventative medicine. To be specific he is attacking obesity, a major contributor to "more than 15 chronic conditions." The details will be released during his State of the State address next week, but the Globe article gives a basic overview of the plan (adding prevention specialists, allocation of grant money, among other features).
[Story]

Our last stop on this virtual tour is in New Hampshire, the next state to fall under the media microscope now that the Iowa caucuses are finished. As the various contenders for the White House prepare to converge on the state the International Association of Dental and Medical Disciplines (IADMD) has issued a press release calling on the candidates to get input from actual doctors when formulating their approaches to health care reform.

"Health care is such an important issue the candidates should be listening to the IADMD doctors that have the medical training to solve the crisis. I commend Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, Mitt Romney and Barack Obama for talking about health care. But their plans are not viable for many reasons, such as cost and their non-doctor approach," says Dr. Ryan.

Dr. John J. Ryan is the founder of the IADMD and a New Hampshire based family dentist.
[Press Release]

That's all for now, see you next week!

SOURCE: "Schwarzenegger's Health Battle Carries Warning for Candidates " 01/04/08
SOURCE: "Businesses warm to idea of universal health care" 01/04/08
SOURCE: "Governor wants to fight obesity with grants and specialists" 01/03/08
SOURCE: " Dying Iowa voter grills candidates on health care" 01/03/08
SOURCE: "Press Release: New Hampshire Doctors Group Challenges Presidential Candidates on Universal Health Care" 01/04/08

photo courtesy of Benimoto, used under this Creative Commons license

Patient Dumping, the BBC, and Health Care Reform in 2008

It's always nice to get an outside perspective on things when trying to make a major decision. This is true of just about everything. Today we are going to take a look at California health care, and we are going to do so though the eyes of the BBC.

It is no secret that the cost factor is mammoth when it comes to medical care in the United States. It is the factor that prevents lower income people from seeking medical aid until they cannot afford it. Numerous emergency room trips are made every day by uninsured people who have finally decided that their health issue du jour has gotten bad enough to force them to seek help.

This subject, and the brutal way in which it is handled sometimes, is presented in a very striking fashion by David Willis, the Los Angeles correspondent for BBC News:

Skid Row in downtown Los Angeles encompasses 50 square blocks of the city and is home to about 800 people sleeping rough.

Some, with no health insurance and no home, were literally dumped there by hospitals because they could not pay the bill.

He converses with Reverend Andy Bates who runs a mission in the area and has documented over a hundred cases of "Patient Dumping" in the skid row area over the past year and a half.

He told me: "I've seen a lot on these streets, but nothing compares to the woman who was dropped off in a hospital gown, an [intravenous drip] still in her arm, who died 10 minutes later in our reception area of pneumonia - discharged simply because she couldn't afford to pay her hospital bill."

If anyone still needs further proof that the health care system in this nation needs to be reformed immediately this should prove sufficient. Best wishes for your health and for health care reform in the New Year.

George Williams
Blogmaster, Health Care Reform Now
http://healthcarereformnow.blogspot.com

SOURCE: "Healthcare for all in California?" 12/27/07
photo courtesy of efouche

California Nurse Say's "Pull The Plug"

Donna Gerber is displeased by the state of affairs in Sacramento, and when the Director of Government Relations for the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee is displeased she is not shy about it. Today she cut loose, using the California Progress Report, a progressive website, as her pulpit to let the powers that be know exactly what she thinks of current attempts at health care reform.

Comparing the rush to pass some form of health care legislation during this state legislative session with the rush to deregulate energy in the 1990's, she warns of hasty legislation with unforeseen consequences with the health care equivalent of rolling blackouts.

With the Assembly posed to vote Monday on the latest iteration of a sweeping bill, it is time to pull the plug. Let's step back, take action instead on an immediate health crisis and come back next year to enact a better, more comprehensive health reform plan that will actually solve our healthcare morass.

Thousands of California children now face the cutoff of coverage due to the President’s veto of the children's health program. Further, the governor is expected to propose emergency across the board budget cuts up to 10 percent as a result of the worsening budget deficit. We should all focus on guaranteeing continued coverage for children and protecting current programs rather than rushing through a bad plan that could just exacerbate the crisis for California families and the state.

AB1X, the health care reform bill she refers to, "will not be universal, it will not be affordable, it will not be of high quality, and bare bone plans with high out of pocket costs will be forced upon Californians and employers who will have no control over the price. This hardly seems to match up with what the pollsters say the people of California want." She drives her point home with facts, one after the other in rapid succession.

From the fact that wage garnishments will be enacted in some cases to ensure coverage to the simple fault that it does not guarantee affordable care to all Californians, the points she raises provoke and disturb. When compared to the stated goal of universal health care her list is an amazing array of loopholes, gaps, and counterintuitive elements; the lack of any limit on premiums or co-pays alone should raise eyebrows at the very least.

SOURCE: "Time to Pull the Plug on the Flawed California Health Care Deal" 12/17/07
photo courtesy of redking remixed and used under this Creative Commons license

Fear of Big Tobacco in California?

This morning Mike Zapler at the Sacramento Bureau of the Mercury News examines the the new tobacco tax proposed in California as a means of funding health care reform. Two dollars a pack could generate a lot of revenue for expanding coverage to the twenty percent of California residents who lack it, but will it be that easy?

Problem is, it might be the very thing that dooms health care reform.

A new cigarette tax would be tantamount to a declaration of war on Big Tobacco, which last year spent more than $65 million to defeat a $2.60-a-pack tax on the California ballot and just this week easily turned back an attempt in Oregon to raise tobacco taxes.

"You can bet they would aggressively fight it, and I don't think they'd be alone," said Sacramento political consultant Frank Schubert, who advised tobacco companies during last year's ballot campaign.

Any attempt to overhaul health care is bound to invite opposition, given the huge financial stakes in the system. The tobacco tax idea is an example of the difficult balance that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democrats are struggling to strike at the negotiating table: achieving meaningful reform without triggering insurmountable opposition.

The challenge is amplified by the fact that any health care proposal is certain to end up on the ballot, where interest groups can spend tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars to defeat it.

He goes on to look at the pros and cons of several aspects of the legislation in its current form, paying particular attention to sections of the law that could be contentious. From Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's lottery lease plan to the Democratic provision for purchasing drugs in bulk, he provides a concise summary of the options being put forth.

As for tobacco, backers of the proposed cigarette tax - which would be on top of the current 87-cent-a-pack tax - acknowledge the industry's political might. But they say the millions of dollars tobacco companies likely would spend against a health care initiative wouldn't necessarily ensure defeat, given the industry's low standing among the public.

"If you have all of the health care community backing reform, I think it can trump the money spent by tobacco," said Kris Deutschman, a political consultant who advised last year's failed campaign to raise the tobacco tax. "Because all they have is money and self-interest."

SOURCE: "Analysis: Tobacco Tax Could Doom Plan for Health Overhaul" 11/09/07
photo courtesy of curran.kelleher, used under this Creative Commons license

California Prepares to Drop Coverage for Kids

The effects of President Bush's recent SCHIP veto are becoming visible in California, where state officials met Monday to prepare for the loss in funding. Anthony Wright, Executive Director of Health Access California, analyzes the ripple effect in a column for the California Progress Report:

In the wake of President Bush's veto of SCHIP and the stalemate over the reauthorization of the federal children's coverage program, board members of California's Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board (MRMIB) on Monday took the first step that would enable the state to put children eligible for Healthy Families on a waitlist, or begin disenrolling eligible children from the program altogether.

Emergency Regulations adopted on Monday can be found here. Healthy Families enrolls approximately 830,000 children in families with incomes between 100% and 250% of the federal poverty level ($20,650 to $51,625 for a family of four).

According to Wright's article the MRMIB's Executive Director, Lesley Cummings, first brought this idea to the table after President Bush's initial veto of the SCHIP legislation. According to Cummings, if the program continued to operate normally Healthy Families would run dry of funding and have to shut down from July through September of 2008.

She and other board members emphasized, ad nauseum, that Monday's adoption of emergency regulations did not necessarily mean that waitlists would be established or children would lose coverage.

Advocates, including Wright's own organization, Health Access California, argued against enacting the emergency regulations at this time. Representatives of 100% Campaign, Community Health Councils, Inc. and other groups were also present to speak against the emergency regulations.

However, after minimal discussion, the chair moved and the board voted to approve the emergency regulations. They did adopt one additional provision to revise the proposed regulation to reinstate previously enrolled children first, before new applicants, when funding was ultimately reauthorized.

The net result is that the waitlisting and disenrollment procedures can start as early as December 5th, 2007 -- less than one month from today. Mr. Wright's column has further details on the board meeting and the mechanics of the waitlisting and disenrolling procedures.


SOURCE: "California Takes First Step Towards Disenrolling Children from Health Coverage Because of Bush Veto of SCHIP" 11/06/07
photo courtesy of Mosseby, used under this Creative Commons

Deadlines Loom for Health Care Legislation

In Washington D.C., where the fiscal year ends on Sunday, September 30, President George W. Bush continues to threaten a veto of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), while Democrats line up votes. Passage is expected in the U.S. House of Representatives early this week and in the U.S. Senate by the end of the week.

In an article for the Monday The New York Times blog, "The Caucus," journalist Carl Hulse explains why Democrats are not backing away from a showdown with the President:

Democrats like their position on this issue. They believe that the public supports making health insurance more affordable and that many families with middle-class incomes are struggling to provide coverage and care for their children. Some Republicans in both the House and Senate are expected to support the plan.

In California, compromise -- not confrontation -- is the top story. The San Francisco Chronicle reports that Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is close to a compromise with Democratic leaders on a health care reform bill. Schwarzenegger wants to pass the bill before the end of the special legislative session. In a Sunday article outlining the financial interests of a dozen key players, Chronicle journalist Tom Chorneau comments on the surprising civility of the public debate at this late stage:

Absent from the airwaves are the attack ads from insurance companies and doctor groups that many feared would have materialized by now. Massive protests from labor unions or consumer groups intended to push the talks one direction or another have also been largely put on hold.

This should be an exciting week of twists and turns in the effort to pass health care reform legislation. Do you think the California bill or the federal SCHIP program will pass? Do you think President Bush will really veto SCHIP? Do you think the U.S. Congress will have the votes to override a presidential veto? We'd love to hear your comments.


SOURCE: "Democratic Leaders Close to Deal on Health Care Reform," Tom Chorneau, San Francisco Chronicle, 09/23/07
SOURCE: "Congress Tackles Child Health Care," by Carl Hulse, The Caucus, Political Blogging from The New York Times, 09/24/07
photo courtesy of U.S. White House

Votes and Vetos: AB8 Passes

All eyes in California are focused on Sacramento.

From the San Francisco Chronicle:

The state Legislature approved an overhaul of California's health care system Monday, but even before the votes were tallied Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vowed to veto the bill and call lawmakers into a special session after the current session ends this week.

Schwarzenegger said he would reject AB8, by Speaker Fabian Núñez, D-Los Angeles, because it puts too great a financial burden on employers and does not address the needs of 2.8 million of California's estimated 6.8 million uninsured residents.

Despite the vote's outcome, there is still a long road ahead for reformers. Schwarzenegger's veto will bring a return to the ongoing debate, while the special session will keep it in the public eye.

Jordan Rau at the Los Angeles Times speculates on the content of possible resolutions:

An agreement would be likely to include a requirement that employers provide health coverage for workers or pay a fee to the state, which would then arrange for insurance for those workers. That proposal forms the heart of the Democratic bill.

The deal probably would also incorporate a tax on hospitals that would help California capture an extra $2 billion in federal aid. The California Hospital Assn. endorsed such a tax last week after Schwarzenegger lobbied hospital executives.

SOURCE: "Health Care Bill Passes Legislature, But Governor Says He'll Veto It" 09/11/07
SOURCE: "Governor Plans Health Care Veto, Talks" 09/11/07
photo courtesy of Fronco Folini on Flickr remixed and used under this Creative Commons license

Universal Concerns About Universal Health Care

In California, the legislative calendar is coming to an end, and still the debate on health care reform seems far from resolution. As competing plans are dissected and debated on the floor, citizens and business groups are stepping up to make their feelings known. Health providers and small businesses are putting out press releases to make their stance on the issue a matter of public record, and the one constant throughout is the sense of urgency that is felt on the subject.

Among others making their position known, the California Association of Physicians Groups stresses the lack of attention to preventative services in any of the current legislation:

California's network of 150 medical groups applauds the leadership in producing their pending health care reform proposals, but a critical factor necessary for these to succeed is glaringly missing -- namely, an express requirement for an affordable, coordinated benefit plan that emphasizes prevention, disease management, and increased access to healthcare.

Small businesses overwhelmingly support universal coverage according to the San Diego Business Journal:

Eighty percent of those surveyed also believe that businesses should provide their employees with health care, according to the survey released Aug. 24 by Small Business for Affordable Healthcare, a coalition of the Small Business Majority, a progressive nonprofit organization based in Sausalito.

The California Primary Care Association joins the bandwagon, invoking the "year of health care reform," which draws to and end soon:

The California Primary Care Association (CPCA), which represents over 650 community clinics and health centers throughout the state, today delivered a letter to Governor Schwarzenegger and legislative leaders calling on them to move now to enact meaningful, comprehensive health care reform that fixes California's malfunctioning system of health care. With just days remaining in the legislative session, the window of opportunity is closing fast on what was proclaimed to be the year of health care reform in California.

SOURCE: "Media Statement From Don Crane, President, California Association of Physician Groups" 09/10/07
SOURCE: "Despite High Cost, Small Business Says It Supports Universal Health Care" 09/10/07
SOURCE: "Act Now to Fix Our Broken Health Care System" 09/07/07

photo courtesy of HeyPaul on Flickr remixed and used under this Creative Commons license

Six Figures Is Not Enough

The ongoing debate about health care centers mainly on the 47 million Americans who are unable to afford the costs of insurance and medical treatment. In an observation that throws things into stark relief, as well as shatters preconceptions, the Daily News opens a recent editorial with this:

When White House spokesman Tony Snow announced his resignation Friday, he cited financial reasons. In his high-profile job as the president's mouthpiece, he was paid $168,000. But even that wasn't enough for him to afford to support his family of five and pay the bills for his cancer treatment.

Certainly Snow's situation is far removed from most of America's blue-, white- and pink-collar workers. But if one of the well-paid close aides to the president can't afford health care costs, how does that bode for the rest of us?

After that attention getting example, the editorial goes on to compare the bills currently up for the vote in California, pointing out that the primary differences are partisan in nature. The column ends by exhorting the state government to resolve the ideological differences on this issue for the good of everyone:

California's leaders owe it to the state's hard workers to spend this Labor Day holiday working together on a compromise bill that both Republicans and Democrats, workers and businesses, can support.

SOURCE: "A Labor Day Gift: Where Did the Year of Health care Reform Go?" 09/02/07
photo courtesy of davidsilver on Flickr remixed and used under this Creative Commons license

Healthy Voices Across The Nation

From the halls and meeting rooms of Capitol Hill to the offices and press conferences of governors around the country, proposals and ideas for reforming our health care system are being announced and argued. A vast array of approaches and plans are being put forth as people on both sides of the partisan fence attempt to find an equitable and implementable solution to the current state of affairs.

Across the nation, citizens are being consulted on the subject as the politicians evaluate possible support for their various plans.

East Coast: In Vermont, the state Legislature's Health Care Reform Commission is consulting its constituency for input. According to the announcement in the Rutland Herald, some questions the Commission put forth in their open hearing were:

What do you believe the next steps should be in health care reform?

What specific suggestions do you have for expanding the state's new Catamount health insurance program for people without coverage?

In addition to expanding affordable coverage, which of the options being considered by the commission are most important to successful health care reform?

Midwest: In Iowa, the consultation with the voting public continues, as reported by The Journal. Their article focuses on Kay Ciha, a resident who has had constant issues with the Medicare system since her husband suffered an accident:

Ciha was one of about 20 county residents from all walks of life - seniors, businesspeople, physicians - that took part in a forum for the Legislative Commission on Affordable Health Care Plans for Small Businesses and Families, a bipartisan group of legislators working to provide a cost-effective health care to Iowans. Sen. Becky Schmitz and a representative for U.S. Congressman Dave Loebsack attended the meeting to hear the wish lists of people who were present.

West Coast: eMax Health reports, the findings of CaliforniaSpeaks, a 3,500 person statewide conversation that took place simultaneously across Sacramento, San Diego, Humboldt County, Fresno, Los Angeles, San Luis Obispo, Oakland and Riverside on August 11:

The eight sites were linked by satellite, so that participants could see and hear what other attendees said across the state. Skilled facilitators led face-to-face discussions at each location while ideas were recorded, considered and voted upon throughout the day with personal voting keypads. To ensure that attendees spanned all different ages, ethnicities, and socio-economic backgrounds, CaliforniaSpeaks used a random selection process to invite most of the participants to take part in the conversation.

While there is a diversity of opinions on the subject, concern over the issue seems nearly universal.

SOURCE: "Public Input Sought on Health Care Reform" 08/29/07
SOURCE: "Citizens Voice Concerns on Health Care" 08/30/07
SOURCE: "How Californians View Current Health Care Reform Proposals" 08/30/07
IMAGE SOURCE : public domain map

California Health Care Battle

In a much watched battle Republicans and Democrats in California are squaring off on the subject of universal coverage for the state's residents.

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's plan would impose new fees on employers and medical providers while making coverage mandatory, although subsidized for the poorest. The Democrats, who control both houses of the Legislature, have proposed an alternative that would require an employer contribution almost double that of the governor's proposal.

Via Forbes:

"The governor and the Legislature are inches apart, but neither side wants to give that final inch," said Larry Levitt, a vice president with the Kaiser Family Foundation.

SOURCE: "Schwarzenegger Tries To Save Health Plan" 08/29/07
photo courtesy of Benjamin Earwicker

posted on behalf of George Williams

Economic Impact of California Reform

UC Berkeley News shares results of a report by university researchers about the economic impact of the two major statewide health care reform plans under consideration in California.

Their study concludes that neither plan will mean job losses in California, and it forecasts that most firms will experience little or no net change in business operating costs after a short adjustment period. Increased operating costs related to increased health care provisions are likely to be absorbed through increased productivity, modest price hikes for consumers and delayed wage increases for workers earning more than minimum wage, the report says.

The article summarizes findings in the report, "Health Coverage Proposals in California: Impact on Businesses." The report was authored by researchers at the University of California at Berkeley's Center for Labor Research and Education, and it analyzes Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's health care reform proposal and Assembly Bill 8 (AB 8).

The story also includes a link to the full report.

SOURCE: "Study Predicts Positive Net Economic Impacts of Key Health Reform Plans" 07/11/07