Utah Legislature: Health reform bills pass House, Senate

SALT LAKE CITY — Five health care reform proposals that range from simplifying billing and claims to requiring the reform-recalcitrant insurance industry to follow through on its commitment not to play the system for its own financial gain were approved Tuesday in the House and Senate.

The most complicated and controversial measure, HB294, was approved in the House 62-13. The vote came after a long debate in which some opponents voiced concern that a section establishing government oversight of insurers smacks a little too much of the federal government imposing itself on Utah's reform efforts in particular and state sovereignty in general.

House Speaker David Clark, R-Santa Clara, said his bill contains no mandates on consumers or small businesses to change their health care plans as the state shifts the system toward being more transparent and open to the 380,000 Utahns who have no medical care coverage now.

The language directed at insurance carriers is not some kind of government "hammer" but a "firm hand in the back" that says the state trusts that insurance risk pools are shared as equitably as possible, but the state is going to verify that companies follow through on their commitment to do so.

Companies aren't being mandated to develop any specific plans, but they have until January 2013 to develop and offer a variety of plans, both in the current market and the coming Web-based health care exchange now in its trial phase.

Clark said the bill doesn't put the government in charge of how the insurance industry works, "but I do need something to ensure that they'll live up to their word. If they do, I give you my personal word I'll be glad to repeal it."

The state already has an insurance department that in effect does the same thing. The risk adjuster called for in the bill is tantamount to a referee who will make sure "everybody is playing by the same rules," Clark added.

The vote came moments after the House approved HCR8. The resolution, sponsored by Clark, tells Congress to let Utah play by its own rules as it goes about renovating health care in Utah. The resolution is both evidence of how Utah is retooling its system and a message that the effort is best left up to Utahns, not the federal government.

Also approved this morning were HB25, SB39 and HB52.

e-mail: jthalman@desnews.com