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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 1090
January Session, 2021
LCO No. 4717
Referred to Committee on HUMAN SERVICES
Introduced by:
(HS)
AN ACT ESTABLISHING A COMMISSION TO STUD Y A HUSKY FOR
ALL SINGLE PAYER, UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE PROGRAM.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (Effective July 1, 2021) (a) As used in this section, "HUSKY 1
for All Single Payer, Universal Health Care Program" means a single 2
payer, universal health care program that: (1) Eliminates duplicative 3
health insurance programs and resulting duplicative costs to the extent 4
permissible under state and federal law; (2) consolidates oversight, 5
payment and risk under one public or quasi-public entity; (3) eliminates 6
coverage limits and cost sharing requirements, including, but not 7
limited to, (A) deductibles, (B) copayments, and (C) coinsurance; (4) 8
incorporates prescription drug price controls; and (5) establishes 9
budgets and payment systems for hospitals for overnight care and a 10
uniform fee schedule for health care providers not providing overnight 11
care. 12
(b) There is established a commission to study and make 13
recommendations concerning establishing a HUSKY for All Single 14
Payer, Universal Health Care Program in the state. The commission may 15 Raised Bill No. 1090
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contract with an independent person or entity for an economic analysis 16
of establishing such program provided such person or entity has 17
completed not less than two such economic analyses of establishing a 18
single payer, universal health care program on the state or federal level. 19
(c) The commission shall be comprised of: 20
(1) The executive director of the Office of Health Strategy, established 21
pursuant to section 19a-754a of the general statutes, or the executive 22
director's designee; 23
(2) The chief executive officer of the Connecticut Health Insurance 24
Exchange, established pursuant to section 38a-1081 of the general 25
statutes, or the chief executive officer's designee; 26
(3) The chairperson of the Council on Medical Assistance Program 27
Oversight, established pursuant to section 17b-28 of the general statutes, 28
or the chairperson's designee; 29
(4) The Healthcare Advocate, appointed pursuant to section 38a-1042 30
of the general statutes, or the Healthcare Advocate's designee; 31
(5) The chairpersons of the Behavioral Health Partnership Oversight 32
Council, established pursuant to section 17a-22j of the general statutes, 33
or their designees; 34
(6) The chairpersons of the joint standing committees of the General 35
Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to human services, 36
insurance, labor and public health, or their designees; 37
(7) The Insurance Commissioner and the Commissioner of Social 38
Services, or their designees; 39
(8) The chief executive officer of the Connecticut Hospital 40
Association, or the chief executive officer's designee; 41
(9) The president of the Connecticut State Medical Society, or the 42
president's designee; 43 Raised Bill No. 1090
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(10) Two providers of medical services under the medical assistance 44
program and two persons who receive such services under the program, 45
appointed by the chairperson of the Council on Medical Assistance 46
Program Oversight; 47
(11) One representative each from Health Equity Solutions and 48
United States of Care, appointed by the executive director of the Office 49
of Health Strategy; 50
(12) Two representatives of labor unions representing employees 51
who work in health care fields, appointed by the executive director of 52
the Office of Health Strategy; and 53
(13) Two persons from academia with expertise in economics or 54
health insurance, or both, appointed by the executive director of the 55
Office of Health Strategy, provided such persons shall not be among the 56
independent persons contracting with the commission to produce an 57
economic analysis on establishing a HUSKY for All Single Payer, 58
Universal Health Care Program. 59
(d) The commission shall meet not later than thirty days after the 60
effective date of this section. The executive director of the Office of 61
Health Strategy, or the executive director's designee, shall serve as a 62
chairperson of the commission and a second chairperson shall be chosen 63
by the commission from among the members of the commission. The 64
joint committee on legislative management shall provide administrative 65
support to the commission. Any vacancies shall be filled by the 66
executive director of the Office of Health Strategy or the appointing 67
authority. If an appointing authority does not fill a vacancy within thirty 68
days, the executive director of the Office of Health Strategy shall fill the 69
vacancy. 70
(e) The commission shall study: 71
(1) Current health care spending, including, but not limited to: (A) 72
State costs of the medical assistance program, (B) state costs of the 73
Connecticut Health Insurance Exchange, and (C) average individual 74 Raised Bill No. 1090
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consumer monthly health care costs for (i) participation in medical 75
assistance programs requiring cost sharing by a participant, (ii) 76
premiums for participants in the Connecticut Health Insurance 77
Exchange, (iii) premiums for private health insurance plans, and (iv) 78
premiums for Medicare supplement plans, Medicare health 79
maintenance organization plans and Medicare drug plans. 80
(2) Sources of current health care financing, including, but not limited 81
to: (A) Federal cost sharing for the medical assistance program, (B) 82
employer and employee costs for private health insurance, (C) federal 83
cost sharing for the Medicare program, and (D) participant cost sharing 84
under the medical assistance program or the Medicare program. 85
(3) A financing methodology for a HUSKY for All Single Payer, 86
Universal Health Care Program, including, but not limited to, whether 87
such program should be financed, in part, through taxation on 88
employers and employees. 89
(4) An economic analysis of establishing a HUSKY for All Single 90
Payer, Universal Health Care Program, including, but not limited to, a 91
comparison of: (A) State costs for the medical assistance program and 92
oversight by the Insurance Department of private health care insurance 93
and state costs under a HUSKY for All Single Payer, Universal Health 94
Care Program, (B) consumer costs for private health care insurance and 95
consumer costs under a HUSKY for All Single Payer, Universal Health 96
Care Program, including any costs if the program is covered in part by 97
taxation of a consumer, (C) employer costs for private health care 98
insurance and employer costs if a HUSKY for All Single Payer, 99
Universal Health Care Program is covered in part by taxation of an 100
employer, and (D) participant cost sharing for medical assistance 101
programs or Medicare and costs for such consumers under a HUSKY 102
for All Single Payer, Universal Health Care Program. 103
(5) Provider payment rates under the medical assistance program, 104
Medicare program and the private health insurance market and 105
recommendations for provider payment rates under a HUSKY for All 106 Raised Bill No. 1090
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Single Payer, Universal Health Care Program. 107
(6) The number of residents uninsured or underinsured under the 108
current health care coverage programs and the number of persons 109
estimated to be uninsured or underinsured under a HUSKY for All 110
Single Payer, Universal Health Care Program. 111
(7) What entity, or entities, should oversee a HUSKY for All Single 112
Payer, Universal Health Care Program. 113
(8) A timeline for adoption of a HUSKY for All Single Payer, 114
Universal Health Care Program, including, but not limited to, (A) 115
implementing any financing methodology to fund such program, (B) 116
eliminating the oversight of any agencies or offices currently overseeing 117
health care coverage, and (C) creation of new oversight entities. 118
(9) The impact on the labor market of a single payer, universal health 119
care system that eliminates private insurance. 120
(f) Not later than January 1, 2022, the commission shall report, in 121
accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes, 122
on the results of its study and recommendations to the Office of Health 123
Strategy and the joint standing committees of the General Assembly 124
having cognizance of matters relating to human services, insurance, 125
labor, public health and finance, revenue and bonding. The commission 126
shall dissolve on the date such report is submitted, or on January 1, 2022, 127
whichever is later. 128
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2021 New section
Statement of Purpose:
To establish a commission to conduct an economic analysis of
establishing a single payer, universal health care program.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
underlined.] Raised Bill No. 1090
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