NU Online News Service, July 18, 2003, 5:18 p.m. EDT – The House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee is considering H.R. 2698, a bill that would give low-income and moderate-income people certificates that they could use to buy their own health insurance or pay the employees' share of the cost of employer-sponsored health coverage.
The government would give the certificates to individuals earning less than $18,000 a year and families earning less than $34,000 a year.
The maximum value of the certificate would be $1,000 for individuals and $2,750 for families.
People who were using the certificates to pay the employees' share of the cost of employer-sponsored coverage would get less than people who were using the certificates to buy individual or family coverage on their own, according to the bill text.
The bill also would increase federal funding for the state-organized risk pools that help provide health coverage for people with health problems.
The bill was introduced by Rep. Michael Bilirakis, R-Clearwater, Fla.
