SAN DIEGO: County Supervisors Approve Plan to Help Insure Poor
The San Diego County Board of Supervisors yesterday unanimously approved a proposal to provide health coverage to about 174,000 of the area's 600,000 uninsured, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. The plan will raise eligibility limits for state and county health insurance plans, subsidize coverage for low-income workers and offer tax incentives and an insurance purchasing pool to encourage small businesses to insure their employees. In addition, the plan aims to enroll more eligible children in existing county and health programs. The county has three months to draft specific plans for reforms, including the expansion of urgent care to more poor adults through the County Medical Services. Officials also must negotiate regulatory waivers and about $170 million in state and federal funding necessary for the plan. The county, which will pick up the remaining costs, plans to allocate $10 million of the tobacco settlement and $5 million of county funds to the effort (Duerksen, 12/15).
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