Affordable Health Insurance News
The torch of the state of the United States health care system has been passed, and it has been passed to Kansas Govenor Kathleen Sebelius. A Democrat, Sebelius was President Obama’s second choice for the position, and she received the call to duty after the first choice, Tom Dachle, withdrew his name after revelations about his sticky unpaid taxes. The nomination came during the first week of March in 2009, and Sebelius said it was a responsibility that she could not refuse. Who is this new face in Obama’s administration, and how will she go about tackling one of the largest crises facing our country right now?
Who is Kathleen Sebelius?
Sebelius was most recently the 44th Governor of the state of Kansas, and is only the state’s second female Governor. She has been in Kansas politics since 1986, when she was first elected to the Kansas House of Representatives. In 1994, she became the 1st Democrat in 10 years to win the position of state insurance commissioner. She’s no stranger to health insurance and health care issues either-she wouldn’t take any campaign contributions from insurers and blocked a proposed merger of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas with an Indiana-based company. It was the first time in the corporation’s history that any attempts at acquisitions hadn’t been allowed. In 1995, Time magazine named her one of the five best governors in Americans, noting that she had successfully been able to eliminate the $1.1 million that she had inherited upon taking office, getting rid of waste in the state government and supporting public education. All of this was done without raising taxes.
What Health Issues Are at Hand?
Fortunately for Sebelius, things can’t get much worse than they are right now. That probably isn’t much of a comfort to her though, as the task she’s facing is definitely a formidable one. With the health care and health insurance system struggling with people getting turned away left and right for insurance, and the sick not being able to afford the care they need, things are in dire need of a drastic makeover. President Obama has said that he plans to release $155 million out of the $787 billion economic stimulus package to support 126 new health centers to give people more access to primary and preventative health care services. Many people have been comparing the changes Obama is gearing up for in the health care industry to those attempted by the Clinton administration, but the key difference is this: the recession America is in has everyone calling for change, no matter how radical it may have seemed years ago. Time will only tell how Sebelius is able to handle the massive task that lies ahead, but putting money toward opening new care centers is a good start. A good question to ask is: Are these centers aimed at only serving those who currently carry health insurance, or will they just be public service centers in which all comers can receive proper medical and attention?
I certainly hope it’s the latter, because with many people continuing to lose jobs and unable to afford health insurance, the unemployed need all the support they can get.
photo credit: ProgressOhio