Give working poor health care vouchers
The time is upon us when the county commissioners will be making decisions about the allocation of funds within the 2016-2017 health care budget. Having approved an overall expenditure of $23.055 million for the upcoming fiscal year, approximately $7.896 million is not yet allocated to specific existing programs.
Let me say upfront that the county should not be in the business of providing healthcare, but should continue to support the existing medical infrastructure which is already doing a good job of serving the medically needy. Such institutions as MCR Health, Manatee Memorial, Centerstone, We Care Manatee, Turning Points and Blake are providing Florida-leading care to the medically needy in Manatee County, and the commissioners are right to continue their financial support of these health care providers.
I would like to propose one new area of support for the medically needy, and that is deductible support for ACA Bronze and Silver plans for residents with incomes between 100 and 200 percent of the Federal Poverty Level. Most residents within this income category pay a monthly premium which is affordable, because it is heavily tax-subsidized by the federal government.
However, they still face daunting self-pay deductibles which range from $1,000 to $6,000 a year. As a way to financially support this group, we should consider a Deductible Support Program which provides a $500 a year voucher good for five patient visits at any dental/medical provider in Manatee County willing to accept them as full payment for a patient visit.
Assuming 5,000 residents take advantage of the program, approximate first year cost would be $250,000.
Having reviewed the potential health care budget allocations for 2016-2017, I can say with a reasonable degree of confidence that there are ample unallocated funds available for a pilot program to be set up for the upcoming fiscal year.
Mike Meehan, CFA
Bradenton
This story was originally published September 27, 2016 at 12:42 PM with the headline "Give working poor health care vouchers."