Ill. Governor Proposes Health Plan

-- Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) has announced a plan to provide health coverage to the state's 1.4 million uninsured residents. He is scheduled to propose how to fund the "Illinois Covered" program, estimated to cost $2.1 billion annually, during his budget address to the General Assembly on Wednesday.

The funding proposals include a new tax on corporate-business gross revenues, a payroll tax on employers who do not provide insurance, an expansion of Medicaid to low-income adults with no children, an expansion of the state's family-care program and insurance subsidies for 1 million uninsured or underinsured middle-class people.

The plan would require insurance companies to offer a standardized policy to uninsured residents regardless of their medical condition. The program would be voluntary for employers; Blagojevich said he would consider mandatory universal health coverage after several years of "Illinois Covered." Amid a state budget crunch, intense opposition to the plan is expected from business leaders and state legislators.

-- From News Services and Staff Reports