Issa wants federal healthcare program open to all

Congressman says public should have the same options as government workers.

WASHINGTON — Though it wasn’t included in the House Republicans’ healthcare bill, Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista) still believes Americans should have access to the same insurance plans federal employees pick from, and he’s hoping the Senate will embrace the idea.

In a letter Thursday, Issa asked the Senate Health Care Working Group to consider opening the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program to more, or all, Americans. It’s a national insurance idea that’s persisted since the program began in 1960, and a proposal Issa has pitched before.

The program allows more than 8 million current and retired federal employees across the country to shop among hundreds of health insurance plans and then apply their employer contribution to whatever plan they choose.

Private insurance companies have pulled out of several state insurance marketplaces, where people whose employers don’t offer insurance can purchase insurance using a federal subsidy.

That leaves people with fewer health insurance choices, a complaint cited by Republicans as a reason to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

“It’s choice. If the government can maximize choice to you and then subsidize where appropriate based on need, then we’ve met the two bases for government involvement,” Issa said.

Issa voted for the American Health Care Act, the GOP bill to roll back much of Obamacare that passed May 4 without Democratic support. He stresses that he did so just to keep momentum.

“One of the reasons I voted for this in the House was to keep the process alive so we could do reform,” Issa said. “Leveraging business models that work is the goal that somebody like me wants to do. Find out what works and invest in it, find out what doesn’t work and fix it or abandon it.”

On Thursday, the Congressional Budget Office said the bill as passed by the House would cause 23 million fewer people to have health insurance by 2026. The budget office, which Congress relies on to analyze the complex legislation, projected that many additional consumers would see skimpier health coverage and higher deductibles.

The Senate has essentially said it will write its own version of the bill.

Issa’s letter to his Senate colleagues also urges members to protect people with preexisting conditions, safeguard coverage for people with mental illnesses and protect people near retirement age from an increase in their premiums.

“There’s still more to be done,” Issa said. “This bill is going to be about compromise and a down payment on change.”