Insure TN 'not perfect,' would reduce worry of ER costs

A patient came to Siloam Family Health Center with a two-day-old gunshot wound to the abdomen.

The man hadn't been to the emergency room for two reasons, said Dr. Morgan Wills, president and CEO of the clinic. A native of Vietnam, the wounded man was concerned about someone not speaking his language, and he wanted to go somewhere offering affordable care.

So because he was uninsured, he waited two days to seek treatment for his gunshot wound.

Wills came to Monday's Insure Tennessee press conference, hosted by Saint Thomas Health and Rep. Jim Cooper, D-Tenn., because he sees firsthand the worry that burdens uninsured people when they think about getting care at an emergency room.

"It's not perfect. I know many have very high, almost unaffordable deductibles and co-pays, but (it is important to have) when it comes to emergencies and catastrophic illness to have that peace of mind and ability to go access care," Wills said. "Most of our patients are terrified of going to the ER. They know it's the biggest cause of bankruptcy in the country, and they stay away from it."

Supporters of Insure Tennessee from the business, health care and political communities traveling from West Tennessee, Knoxville and Washington, D.C., took the stage at Saint Thomas Health to launch a fresh push for Gov. Bill Haslam's insurance expansion plan.

Wills said his Nashville clinic would not benefit from Insure Tennessee because it serves the uninsured, offering, as he put it, a "foster medical home" until they can get insurance and move into the broader system.

Estimated 270,000 would enroll

Insure Tennessee is a two-tiered program designed to provide insurance to uninsured people who fall in the gap between qualifying to buy insurance on the federally run exchange and qualifying for traditional Medicaid.

An estimated 270,000 would enroll in the program, which would be funded by a federal tax that state taxpayers already pay, as well as an assessment on hospitals around the state.

Haslam worked with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to craft a program that more closely resembles the commercial health insurance market than a traditional entitlement program.

One program, The Volunteer Plan, helps people pay premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance.

Nearly one in three adults struggle with medical debt. Some are certainly people who rack up expensive bills on plans that have high deductibles, but for others, injury or illness can be physically and financially crippling.

Diane Donahue makes a living helping others. She earns $11,000 a year pricing items donated to the Wilson County Community Help Center thrift store.

She worries about being "an emergency away from crippling medical debt."

Insure Tennessee garnered strong support from both sides of the political aisle, as well as the business and health care communities. According to a Vanderbilt University poll, more than 64 percent of Tennesseans, roughly 4.1 million people, support the proposal.

Many business leaders from around the state back the plan, even if they do not agree with the politics of the Affordable Care Act.

"When the business leaders look at it dispassionately and the politics are taken out of it, a lot of them agree that it's an economically beneficial thing to do," Charlie Howorth, executive director of Tennessee Business Roundtable, told The Tennessean.

But the plan was defeated twice in state Senate committees by a core group of legislators who touted various arguments, including its association with Obamacare and national debt, to putting the decision off until the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a case on tax credits.

"They may not like the politics of it," said Howorth. "Hopefully people will keep their minds open to see what possibly can happen and what can be achieved."

Randy Boyd, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, recently told The Jackson Sun that the lack of access to health care in West Tennessee, an area that has had several hospital closures, would make it challenging to recruit new business to the area.

"I just hate the fact that it seems like politics has sidelined a good, not perfect, plan to insure Tennesseans," said Wills.

Reach Holly Fletcher at 615-259-8287 or on Twitter @hollyfletcher.

INSURE TENNESSEE

Here is the contact information for Tennessee's legislative leadership and those who did not vote to pass Insure Tennessee when the proposal was revived in March.

Executive

Gov. Bill Haslam, 615-741-2001, Bill.Haslam@tn.gov

Leadership

Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey, 615-741-4524, Lt.gov.ron.ramsey@capitol.tn.gov

House Speaker Beth Harwell, 615-741-0709, Speaker.beth.harwell@capitol.tn.gov

Senate Commerce and Labor Committee members

(No votes or abstentions on Insure Tennessee)

Sen. Todd Gardenhire, 615-741-6682, Sen.todd.gardenhire@capitol.tn.gov

Sen. Mark Green, 615-741-2374, Sen.mark.green@capitol.tn.gov

Sen. Dolores Gresham, 615-741-2368, Sen.dolores.gresham@capitol.tn.gov

Sen. Jack Johnson, 615-741-2495, Sen.jack.johnson@capitol.tn.gov

Sen. Steve Southerland, 615-741-3851, Sen.steve.southerland@capitol.tn.gov

Sen. Jim Tracy, 615-741-1066, Sen.jim.tracy@capitol.tn.gov

Sen. Bo Watson, 615-741-3227, Sen.bo.watson@capitol.tn.gov

Special Session Health and Welfare Committee members

(No votes on Insure Tennessee)

Sen. Frank Niceley, 615-741-2061, Sen.frank.niceley@capitol.tn.gov

Sen. Janice Bowling, 615-741-6694, Sen.janice.bowling@capitol.tn.gov

Sen. Rusty Crowe, 615-741-2468, Sen.rusty.crowe@capitol.tn.gov

Sen. Todd Gardenhire, 615-741-6682, Sen.todd.gardenhire@capitol.tn.gov

Sen. Kerry Roberts, 615-741-4499, Sen.kerry.roberts@capitol.tn.gov

Sen. Mike Bell, 615-741-1946, Sen.mike.bell@capitol.tn.gov

Sen. Brian Kelsey, 615-741-3036, Sen.brian.kelsey@capitol.tn.gov