President's Health Reform Proposal Includes Medicaid Expanion, DRE, SNHP Exemption from Insurer Fee

President Obama released a health care reform proposal Monday in preparation for the bipartisan White House Summit to be held on February 25. Although the proposal is not in legislation-ese and lacks considerable detail, ACAP is happy to report that the DRE is included, and that a Senate-like health insurer fee exempts nonprofit health plans that “serve critical purposes for the community,” such as serving public programs for low-income, elderly and disabled consumers. CHIP is preserved in the proposal, and Medicaid is expanded to 133 percent of the FPL. The proposal can be viewed here: http://www.whitehouse.gov/health-care-meeting/proposal.

Meanwhile, ACAP continues to lead the effort to expand Medicaid to all individuals below a certain threshold of the federal poverty level. An ad urging Congress to provide Medicaid to all individuals under 150 percent of the FPL was published in Roll Call Monday, February 8. Another ad, reflecting policy in the President’s proposal, will run on Thursday, February 25 to coincide with the bipartisan White House Summit on reform. The Summit can be viewed at 10 am on the 25th here: www.WhiteHouse.gov/live.