The East Valley Chambers of Commerce Alliance (EVCCA) strongly supports Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer’s plan to restore our Medicaid population.
For far too long, Arizona businesses that want to offer competitive benefits have been forced to pay the “hidden healthcare tax,” high insurance premiums which occur as a result of the cost shifting necessary with uncompensated care. Under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA), hospitals are required to stabilize any patient who walks through their doors regardless of their ability to pay. The costs of providing services to uninsured individuals are felt by all of us when our policies are up for renewal and premiums increase significantly.
On average, uncompensated care has more than doubled for hospitals statewide, creating a healthcare system that simply is unsustainable. Our hospitals currently account for almost 3 percent of all employment in the State and pay an average salary of $65,000. Hospitals also provide over $27.8 billion to Arizona’s economy. Arizona cannot afford to lose these jobs or the economic benefits they bring.
The Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS) is one of the most cost-effective Medicaid programs in the Nation and has been referred to by many as the gold standard. Restoring our childless adult population and allowing enrollment for those making up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level, would allow Arizona to draw down $2 billion in federal funds as provided for in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). This equates to approximately $10 for every $1 the State spends. At a time when every State wants to increase their economic competitiveness, Arizona cannot afford to pass on obtaining these funds.
We commend Gov. Brewer for putting together a plan to partner with the hospitals to generate the necessary State funds without burdening our budget. Gov. Brewer has also put the necessary protections in place to ensure that consumers won’t experience medical or rate increases due to Medicaid restoration and that Arizona will not be obligated to the restoration should the federal funding be altered in the future. The EVCCA urges our State lawmakers to support the Governor’s plan.
The authors of this article are the Presidents and Chief Executive Officers of the Apache Junction (Johnson), Chandler (Kimble), Gilbert (Tilque), Mesa (Harrison), Queen Creek (Scott), Scottsdale (Kidder) and Tempe (Miller) chambers of commerce which collectively comprise the EVCCA. The EVCCA represents more than 5,500 members and works to advance the common business interests in the East Valley.
Leon Ceniceros posted at 8:47 am on Wed, Mar 13, 2013.
Who are members of a Chamber of Commerce = Small/Large Business Owners.
Who don't want to have to pay for insurance or Obama-Care for their employees = Small/Large Business Owners.
WHO WILL END UP FOOTING THE BILL FOR THE EMPLOYEES OF THESE SMALL/LARGE BUSINESS OWNERS = YOU AND ME, THE HARD-WORKING TAX PAYERS OF THE EAST VALLEY THROUGH HIGHER HOSPITAL BILLS (THAT ARE ALL READY SKY-HIGH IN THE FIRST PLACE)
SMALL/LARGE BUSINESS OWNERS GET TO KEEP THE MONEY THAT THEY WOULD HAVE HAD TO SHELL OUT TO COVER THEIR EMPLOYEES (HIGHER PROFITS)....................YOU AND I WILL GET THE SHAFT.
Accuracy posted at 8:52 am on Wed, Mar 13, 2013.
The East Valley Chambers of Commerce Alliance (EVCCA) is for Restoration of Medicaid Welfare.
“Medicare” is for the workers who paid into the Social Security system.
While, ObamaCare “Medicaid Expansion” is welfare for those who did not pay into the Social Security system . . . and for many that do not even have a Social Security number.
What we need is a Arizona Senate committee to reject the idea of ObamaCare Medicaid expansion, and but an end to the possibility that the state would add more poor people to "Medicaid Welfare" rolls.
chatmandu002 posted at 10:45 am on Wed, Mar 13, 2013.
Jan took the easy way out by taking the federal money. Medicare will fail along with the rest of Obamacare. There is not enough money to keep it going. Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid will bankrupt the country.
Accuracy posted at 8:36 am on Thu, Mar 14, 2013.
chatmandu002 thinks: “Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid will bankrupt the country.”
President Obama’s “Big Government” spending, and unaddressed government wastes, will for sure.
Democrats in the Senate have put together their first Obama budget. It proposes nearly $1 trillion in new taxes, but it still doesn't balance the budget. Or stop congressional spending of present and future Social Security funds.
frank66 posted at 1:18 pm on Thu, Mar 14, 2013.
This is a little silly. The whole reason for ACA is to get uninsured people on insurance, and thus have them no longer be an uncompensated burden for insurance companies and healthcare providers. Of course, this problem is actually the result of initial government interventionism; Emergency rooms are forced by law to treat anyone and everyone who comes in, and then they are responsible for the uncompensated care, but hospitals do everything they can to pass the burden on to someone else, like insurance companies and the government, which results in higher healthcare costs for everyone else. The government has "benevolently" come in and said, "O no! look at this uncompensated care problem and rising costs! We will fix it!" So the purpose of ACA is to "fix" the problems caused by government's regulations in the first place!!
Healthcare is a good and service just like any other on the market; it is limited by scarcity and the ability of a consumer to demand it(by first being productive). If you can't pay, you can't play.
And I especially love the government's fear mongering that without ACA and the consequential Medicaid expansion, we will have hundreds of thousands of people dying on the streets!!! Ask anyone from before Medicare and Medicaid came around. Were thousands of people just expiring on the street corners, in back alleys, in their beds? NO! Private individuals, churches, and charities successfully cared for all who needed help, and we had a realistic understanding of the world that death is a natural and inevitable part of living. No matter how much money we have (read bill gates, warren buffett) everyone will ultimately die. And no matter how much money the government steals, everyone will get sick and eventually die as well.
The best way to fix a problem caused by the government is to repeal the initial offending law, not add more law, which will create more problems and unintended consequences, which will cause politicians to say we need even more laws to "fix" this new problem. This is a ruthless cycle that can only end in complete socialism.
VofReason posted at 12:30 pm on Fri, Mar 15, 2013.
This is good, all we need to do is get more people on the dole and we will be in great shape. Who can question that logic? Didn't we pay for 40% of all births in 2011 under state Medicaid? This is more indicative of lack of responsibility than a growing need.