Commentary 33- NJHCC Act

My wife Kathleen and I have sent the following e-mail to our New Jersey district 23 representatives, Senator LEONARD LANCE , Assemblyman MICHAEL J. DOHERTY , and Assemblywoman MARCIA A. KARROW. We are urging support for the New Jersey Health Care Choice act, which enables New Jersey residents to purchase any health insurance policy approved for sale in any other state...a right that is currently violated by NJ law. We also sent a copy to the bill's sponsor, Assemblyman Jay Weber.

"We strongly support Assemblyman Jay Weber’s New Jersey Health Care Choice Act, and we urge you to actively and strongly support this bill. A very damaging myth that is pushing America piecemeal toward a government takeover of healthcare is that our “free market” system has failed. In fact, the problems in healthcare have grown in lockstep with government’s steadily increasing intrusions over the decades. The result is the current unsustainable government-imposed third-party-payer system. Today, except for bits and pieces here and there, no free market any longer exists. Consequently, it is government controls, not the non-existent free market, that has failed in healthcare.

"Our hope is that Assemblyman Webber’s initiative will be accompanied by an explicit, principled call for a free market in health care…i.e., a solution based on individual rights, not Trenton political power. New Jersey political leaders should give our residents “a choice, not an echo”, to borrow a phrase.

"We urge that NJHCC be followed by legislative proposals to abolish other roadblocks to a free health insurance market, such as the myriad of state-imposed mandates. These mandates violate the rights of insurers and individuals to enter into voluntary contractual agreements based on mutual benefit. They are a magnet for special interests seeking to coercively impose coverage for particular medical treatments and procedures on others that may not want, can not afford, or would not otherwise buy it. Insurance mandates are immoral, and are in fact nothing more than wealth redistribution masquerading as insurance.

"NJHCC is a very good start to restoring free market medicine. Let those Trenton politicians who would oppose this act explain why they are standing in the way of individuals and insurers exercising their rights to agree on policies without government’s coercive interference. Please make the passage of the New Jersey Health Care Choice Act one of your top priorities.

"PS. There is an organization called We Stand FIRM (Freedom and Individual Rights in Medicine) that should provide valuable intellectual ammunition for health care freedom’s advocates and which may be of interest to you. Here is the link to their website:

We Stand FIRM


Response from Assemblyman Weber:

Dear Mr. and Mrs. LaFerrara

Thank you for your kind correspondence and email to your district
representatives. We need good citizens like you speaking out for real
reforms of our health care.

Given your linking to the FIRM posting, I thought you might find
interesting the attached articles about the NJHCC.

Attachment 1: NCPA(NJHCA).pdf (application/octet-stream)

Attachment 2: Appeal Democrat - Unhealthy Situation.doc (application/msword)


Thank you again for taking the time to contact me. Your input always is
appreciated and welcomed, and please stay in touch.

Sincerely,

Jay Webber
Assemblyman, 26th District
Chairman, Taxpayer Protection Caucus
101 Gibraltar Dr., Suite 1-A
Morris Plains, NJ 07950
(973) 984-0922


Reprint of Appeal Democrat article;


Our View: Unhealthy situation
June 3, 2008
One of Sacramento's great laments is the number of Californians without health insurance. The predictable bad solution has been to propose billions in additional taxes. California has been spared so far from this counterintuitive, costly "solution."
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and legislators ought to look eastward for a better idea. But not to Massachusetts, where government-imposed, so-called universal health care has increased costs and taxes, is running at a deficit, doesn't cover everyone as promised and imposes fines on anyone who won't buy state-mandated coverage.
"It's a proven failure," says Sally C. Pipes, president of the Pacific Research Institute.
"The least-expensive plan would cost a 37-year-old male resident of Massachusetts $196 a month, and a fine for not having insurance could run half of that, or $98 a month. The same 37-year-old living in Dallas could buy coverage for $98 per month," says Devon Herrick, National Center for Policy Analysis senior fellow.
Instead, Sacramento should look to Florida and even New Jersey, which point the way to substantially reducing health insurance costs with a more market-based approach.
The Florida Legislature unanimously approved allowing insurance companies to sell stripped-down, no-frills policies, exempted from more than 50 state-imposed mandates, including required coverage for acupuncture and chiropractics.
Lobbyists for every conceivable health care treatment have persuaded states to require insurers to sell the whole menu or nothing. It's estimated that, nationwide, state mandates impose more than 1,900 individual obligations. But Floridians now can shop cafeteria-style, picking and paying for only the coverage they desire, trimming their costs dramatically and getting only what they deem necessary.
Sacramento also should look to the unlikely venue of New Jersey, where a family's annual health care policy costs $10,398, compared with the national average of $5,799. Responding to this exorbitant cost, a New Jersey Republican assemblyman is introducing a reasonable remedy.
That legislation would permit New Jersey residents to buy low-cost health insurance from any registered policy in any of the 50 states. Allowing purchases across state lines gives buyers alternatives to New Jersey's expensive coverage, inflated by multiple mandates on in-state insurance sellers. The Wall Street Journal reports that a healthy 25-year-old man can buy basic coverage in Kentucky for about $960 a year, compared with $5,880 in New Jersey.
Knocking down the props that hold up prices can be done in California without adding a dime to anyone's tax burden or policy premiums. If more-affordable coverage really is what the Legislature and governor want to accomplish, Florida and New Jersey point the way.


Response from Assemblyman Doherty


Michael and Kathleen,

Thank you for contacting me with your support of the New Jersey Health
Care Choice Act. I will keep your comments in mind if this legislation
comes before the Assembly for a vote.

Regards,

Mike Doherty


Response From Assemblywoman Karrow

July 14, 2008

Mr. and Mrs. Michael LaFerrara
54 Lazy Brook Road
Flemington, NJ 08822

Dear Mr. and Mrs. LaFerrara:

Thank you for contacting me in support of Assembly Bill Number 2767, the
New Jersey Healthcare Choice Act, that permits health insurers licensed
in other states to provide coverage in New Jersey under certain
circumstances.

This bill is currently pending consideration by the Assembly Financial
Institutions and Insurance Committee. If this bill was to come before
me for a vote on the floor of the General Assembly, I am inclined to
vote yes.

As a former local elected official, county freeholder, and now State
legislator, I have a strong voting record as a fiscal conservative. The
cost of living in New Jersey is too high and is pushing out the middle
class majority. By deregulating the health insurance industry and
allowing more free market practices, the cost of healthcare should
decrease. However, reforming the healthcare industry in New Jersey is
going to be very complicated. Difficult decisions will have to be made
about the balance between covering what is medically necessary and what
is appropriate. As your state legislator, I can assure you that I will
be an active participant in the debate, and I will be diligent in
reviewing all legislation brought before the General Assembly.

Thank you again for contacting me in support of A-2767. I appreciate it
when constituents inform me of their views on state matters, and I
encourage you to do so again in the future.

Sincerely,

Marcia A. Karrow
Assemblywoman, 23rd District