California is poised to reinstate the individual mandate to purchase health insurance that President Trump and congressional Republicans ended two years ago. Capital Public Radio’s Ben Adler has more on legislation sent to Governor Gavin Newsom’s desk yesterday (MONDAY).
Starting January 1st, the state would charge a fee of at least 700 dollars a year to Californians who don’t obtain insurance.
Assembly Budget Committee chair Phil Ting says the revenue would help extend subsidies on the state’s Affordable Care Act insurance exchange to middle class consumers.
Ting: “Covered California has projected that these new subsidies will impact almost a million Californians and help them get the health care access that they deserve.” (0:10)
But vice-chair Jay Obernolte (OH-burr-noll-tee) criticized the shift in money away from the young, healthy lower income Californians who are most likely to pay the individual mandate penalty.
Obernolte: “This trailer bill will take money away from people making $30-to-50,000 a year and give it to people making between $75-130,000 a year. Colleagues, that makes no sense.” (0:12)
Lawmakers also voted to expand the state’s health care program for low-income Californians to young adult immigrants living in the state illegally. Currently, Medi-Cal only covers immigrant children.
At the state Capitol, I’m Ben Adler.