September 6, 2007

Hospital fee

The hospital association support for the governor's proposed fee on their operations could be a turning point in the health care debate. It puts a major player in the health care system in Schwarzenegger's camp and demonstrates the power of his "shared responsibility" theme. If approved, it would also bring an extra $1.7 billion into the system from the federal government. Speaker Nunez has said he wants to take the fee revenue and the federal match and tack it onto the proposal put foward by him and Sen. Perata, while keeping their proposed mandate on employers and a 7.5 percent tax on companies that do not provide insurance. But the Democrats know that will never fly with the governor. This devleopment should spur them all toward finding common ground.

Posted by dweintraub on September 6, 2007 2:25 PM