Legislature(2009 - 2010)CAPITOL 106
02/09/2010 03:00 PM House HEALTH & SOCIAL SERVICES
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Presentation by the Mat-su Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition. | |
| HJR35 | |
| HB168 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| *+ | HJR 35 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 168 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
HJR 35-CONST AM: HEALTH CARE
4:08:26 PM
CO-CHAIR HERRON announced that the next order of business would
be HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 35 Proposing amendments to the
Constitution of the State of Alaska prohibiting passage of laws
that interfere with direct payments for health care services and
the right to purchase health care insurance from a privately
owned company, and that compel a person to participate in a
health care system.
4:09:10 PM
REPRESENTATIVE MIKE KELLY, Alaska State Legislature, discussed
the proposed national health care system and the backlash to the
mandated single payer system. He noted that 35 other states
were also in opposition to the proposed national health care
system. He explained that HJR 35 would protect the right to
choose participation in any given health care system, and would
prohibit and fines or penalties for failure to participate; it
would protect the right to purchase or provide lawful medical
services without government fines, interference or penalties.
He emphasized that HJR 35 would place these rights in the
Constitution of the State of Alaska. He offered his belief that
the majority of Alaskans opposed mandated health care, and that
this mandate could result in a lawsuit. He opined that the U.
S. Supreme Court would lean toward the protection of personal
choice of health care.
4:14:03 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON declared that he recognized the intent of
HJR 35, and he directed attention to the proposed Section 2,
which stated in part: "no law shall be passed that compels a
person, employer, or health care provider to participate in a
health care system..." He asked if this would not allow the
state to initiate a new tier of the retirement system.
4:15:27 PM
REPRESENTATIVE KELLY replied that he would research that
question.
4:16:20 PM
REPRESENTATIVE HOLMES referred to Medicare, Indian Health
Services, and other similar medical plans, and pointed out that
these had limits which violated the language of HJR 35. She
expressed concern that this would tie the hands of legislators
for any future changes and pointed specifically to the language
in Section 2 (b) which stated: "prohibits a person from or that
penalizes a person for making direct payment to a health care
provider for tendering health care services."
4:18:08 PM
REPRESENTATIVE KELLY offered his belief that HJR 35 did not have
any effect on programs already in place. He reiterated that it
reinforced personal choice.
4:20:05 PM
CO-CHAIR HERRON asked Representative Kelly where the House
Health and Social Services Standing Committee should focus its
policy debate, and then where he believed that the House
Judiciary Standing Committee would focus.
4:20:32 PM
REPRESENTATIVE KELLY suggested that each committee should look
at whether HJR 35 was "in the best overall health care interest
of the state."
4:22:07 PM
CO-CHAIR HERRON clarified that proposed HJR 35 would be held in
the committee until the following week, and he suggested that
the House Health and Social Services Standing Committee debate
the health and social services aspect of it.
4:22:33 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CISSNA cited that more than 100,000 Alaskans did
not have health coverage. She shared that there were already
capacity problems within the health care system, and she voiced
"that we are a state that is addicted to addictions." She asked
how HJR 35 addressed the health care problems in Alaska. She
noted the difficulty of access to health care for many Alaskans.
4:25:22 PM
REPRESENTATIVE KELLY, in response to Representative Cissna,
disclosed that he had served on a hospital foundation for 20
years. He agreed that the current health care system was in
need of improvement. He opined that the government element was
a disincentive for doctors and that the more separated the
patient was from the provider and the cost, the worse the
situation became. He offered his belief that the heart of the
problem for the health care system was government centralized
control.
4:28:43 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON asked for clarifications that HJR 35 would
not prevent the federal government from passing a law, but that
it would stop future legislatures from adopting a federal
program.
4:30:40 PM
REPRESENTATIVE KELLY replied that the least effect of HJR 35
would be to send a signal to the federal government that Alaska
was against additional federal controls over medical choices.
He said the strictest application would be Alaska's refusal to
comply with a federal mandate.
4:32:43 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON asked to clarify that HJR 35 was an
amendment to the Constitution of the State of Alaska to restrict
the legislature from passing a law, even if that law was in the
public interest. He questioned if the proposed resolution would
prevent the state from adopting a medical plan without passing
or repealing a constitutional amendment.
4:33:58 PM
REPRESENTATIVE KELLY agreed.
4:34:03 PM
REPRESENTATIVE T. WILSON asked if Representative Kelly had heard
any concerns from the public.
4:34:25 PM
REPRESENTATIVE KELLY replied that worries about a "head butt
with the federal government" and complications to existing
programs were the two concerns.
4:34:51 PM
REPRESENTATIVE T. WILSON asked if those two concerns were
stronger than the "fear that people have with being forced into
a program that they don't want and us sitting back as a state
acting like we don't care."
4:35:15 PM
REPRESENTATIVE KELLY offered his belief that the overwhelming
response was in support of HJR 35.
4:35:23 PM
CO-CHAIR KELLER, as a prime co-sponsor of the bill, reported
that Arizona had vetted this legislation, and that most of the
questions had already been answered. He said that "precisely
what the bill does, it forbids any law that we have would be
unconstitutional that would forbid an individual in the State of
Alaska from securing medical care outside of the required
medical system that is there." He opined that the constitution
was the law of the land and that this resolution would be voted
on by the people.
4:37:19 PM
CO-CHAIR HERRON opened public testimony and said that he would
hold it open.
4:37:33 PM
MIKE PRAX offered his support for HJR 35 as it "might set up a
confrontation between the state and the federal government over
this particular issue." He opined that the federal
administration assumed it had absolutely authority and power.
He asked that the resolution be passed to protect "the
individual right to make decisions."
4:39:21 PM
PEGGY ANN MCCONNOCHIE, National Federation of Independent
Business (NFIB), shared that she and her husband were small
business owners. She offered her belief that the single payer
health care system did not fit for Alaskans, as it did not
provide lower cost, greater availability, or choice. She
emphasized that she was totally against what the federal
government was trying to do. She offered her opinion that small
business owners would easily go out of business with additional
federal fees. She encouraged the protection of small businesses
from unreasonable taxation, and any mandates for health care for
employees.
4:42:25 PM
CHRISTIE HERRERA, Director, Health and Human Services Task
Force, American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), explained
that ALEC was a non-partisan organization of lawmakers. She
offered support for HJR 35. She offered the belief that it
would ensure continued access to health services and the right
to pay directly for health services. She opined that it would
stop mandates that did not work, as a government requirement for
health insurance was ineffective, bureaucratic, and costly. She
summarized that the cornerstone of any reform was the protection
of patients' rights.
4:45:38 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON directed attention to the proposed Section
2, which stated in part: "no law shall be passed that compels a
person, employer, or health care provider to participate in a
health care system..." He asked if this issue had arisen in any
other jurisdiction and would it restrict the state's ability to
initiate a new tier of the state retirement system.
MS. HERRERA agreed with Representative Kelly that this was a
forward looking bill, and would not affect current programs.
She stated that there was no intent to affect any safety net
programs. She agreed that it would preclude the state from
enacting an individual or an employer mandate to purchase health
coverage.
4:47:07 PM
CO-CHAIR HERRON stated that he would keep public testimony open.
[HJR 35 was held over.]
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| HJR35pkt.PDF |
HHSS 2/9/2010 3:00:00 PM |
|
| hb168r09a.PDF |
HHSS 2/9/2010 3:00:00 PM |
HB 168 |
| hb168r09b.PDF |
HHSS 2/9/2010 3:00:00 PM |
HB 168 |
| hb168r10.PDF |
HHSS 2/9/2010 3:00:00 PM |
HB 168 |
| MSAPC.PDF |
HHSS 2/9/2010 3:00:00 PM |