Wis. Legislators Pushing Mandated State Health Plan Similar to Mass.

Two Wisconsin legislators, one Democrat and the other Republican, have worked with two health policy officials to generate interest in creating a Wisconsin Health Plan. With Massachusetts basking in the national spotlight for its sweeping proposal to require all citizens to have health insurance, the legislators have been shopping the idea to business groups, trade associations and others.

Gov. Mitt Romney has signaled he will sign the bill into law Wednesday with one change. Romney was expected to veto or significantly alter a key portion of the bill: a $295-per-worker assessment for businesses that do not provide health insurance. Some critics call that a tax on businesses.

“Massachusetts blazes a trail here,” said Rep. Curt Gielow, a Mequon Republican and one of the backers of the Wisconsin Health Plan. “We should be on their tail.”

Gielow and Democratic Rep. Jon Richards of Milwaukee, along with David Riemer and Lisa Ellinger of the Wisconsin Health Project, have been on the speaking circuit promoting the plan.

The Massachusetts version and the Wisconsin Health Plan use a mix of mandates and market solutions to expand health insurance coverage. But the Wisconsin Health Plan is more sweeping in scope and could face more opposition.

It would require all employers to contribute to the cost of health insurance for their employees through a payroll tax, raising costs for some employers. It would also transform the way health insurance is bought and sold in Wisconsin, potentially increasing competition.

The Massachusetts legislation, Richards said, shows that health care reform shouldn’t be a partisan issue.

“People on both sides of the aisles have to come to grips with this,” he said

Topics Massachusetts Wisconsin