Health Insurance the Jersey Way
9:59 AM
by Nick Stone of Drawnlines Politics.
With the 2010 census on our doorstep and the impending redistricting to follow, it is of the utmost importance that voters take the governor races seriously. The party in power at the Statehouse is the party that holds the veto power over redistricting plans. That is equally true in Virginia and New Jersey, two states holding hotly contested governor races in November. If you don't live in NJ or VA, don't think for one second that these races don't matter to you. They do.
In the NJ race, the issue over mammogram mandates have been central to the tightening of the polls that has occurred in recent weeks. Because these races matter, and because the question at hand centers on the hot topic of health care, I thought I would bring it to light for my readers this morning. An article in today's WSJ tells the truth behind the rumors that candidate Chris Christie wants to deny mammogram coverage to NJ's women. The candidate, whose mother is a survivor of breast cancer, adamantly denies such claims and counters back that they are examples of the "Corzine Machine" negative campaign tactics.
What has happened in New Jersey is a great preview for what may happen across America if the Obama Health Care Reforms pass. It's that simple. In WSJ, writer Merrill Matthews simply states that "State mandates make health insurance more comprehensive, but they also make it more expensive." New Jersey, he claims, arguably has the highest health insurance premiums in the country, and the state's 45 mandates are a big culprit of the high costs. As an example, a typical New Jersey family would purchase apples-to-apples coverage in Pennsylvania (a state with few mandates) for a quarter to half of the price. Oh, and in New Jersey, taxpayers pay an additional 2.25% tax on their health premiums to put them ahead of other states thanks to Governor Corzine.
Another driver in high premiums, Matthews argues, are the provisions adopted in the early 1990s which require insurance companies to cover all applicants and to charge equal premiums, known as a "community rating". New Jersey, alone among states in its "community rating" system, has the least affordable premiums in the country. Because of the cost drivers, many New Jerseyans opt out of health coverage until they get sick.
The cost of a mammogram: $100
The cost of NJ health premium: $13,595/yr according to Families USA
In other words, no woman is suffering from lack of access to a mammogram (or many other procedures, it's worth mentioning) because of a lack of health insurance coverage for the procedure. Simply put, it would be much much easier on an average woman to pay out of pocket for the procedure and drop health coverage altogether. Many NJ women already have, and it's an unfortunate testament to government mandates and insurance regulation both.
If you have family in New Jersey, if you have friends in New Jersey, know someone who works in New Jersey, goes to school in New Jersey - whatever the case, PLEASE encourage them to speak up by pulling the lever for Chris Christie on the first Tuesday in November. It could literally be the difference between life and death for many NJ women. It's that important.
There's ALWAYS something new happening at Drawnlines Politics.
For videos and archives visit our homepage
Check out our new Election Center to read more about the NJ Governor race!
With the 2010 census on our doorstep and the impending redistricting to follow, it is of the utmost importance that voters take the governor races seriously. The party in power at the Statehouse is the party that holds the veto power over redistricting plans. That is equally true in Virginia and New Jersey, two states holding hotly contested governor races in November. If you don't live in NJ or VA, don't think for one second that these races don't matter to you. They do.
What has happened in New Jersey is a great preview for what may happen across America if the Obama Health Care Reforms pass. It's that simple. In WSJ, writer Merrill Matthews simply states that "State mandates make health insurance more comprehensive, but they also make it more expensive." New Jersey, he claims, arguably has the highest health insurance premiums in the country, and the state's 45 mandates are a big culprit of the high costs. As an example, a typical New Jersey family would purchase apples-to-apples coverage in Pennsylvania (a state with few mandates) for a quarter to half of the price. Oh, and in New Jersey, taxpayers pay an additional 2.25% tax on their health premiums to put them ahead of other states thanks to Governor Corzine.
Another driver in high premiums, Matthews argues, are the provisions adopted in the early 1990s which require insurance companies to cover all applicants and to charge equal premiums, known as a "community rating". New Jersey, alone among states in its "community rating" system, has the least affordable premiums in the country. Because of the cost drivers, many New Jerseyans opt out of health coverage until they get sick.
The cost of a mammogram: $100
The cost of NJ health premium: $13,595/yr according to Families USA
In other words, no woman is suffering from lack of access to a mammogram (or many other procedures, it's worth mentioning) because of a lack of health insurance coverage for the procedure. Simply put, it would be much much easier on an average woman to pay out of pocket for the procedure and drop health coverage altogether. Many NJ women already have, and it's an unfortunate testament to government mandates and insurance regulation both.
If you have family in New Jersey, if you have friends in New Jersey, know someone who works in New Jersey, goes to school in New Jersey - whatever the case, PLEASE encourage them to speak up by pulling the lever for Chris Christie on the first Tuesday in November. It could literally be the difference between life and death for many NJ women. It's that important.
There's ALWAYS something new happening at Drawnlines Politics.
For videos and archives visit our homepage
Check out our new Election Center to read more about the NJ Governor race!
Posted by Nick Stone
on 9:59 AM.
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