DUBOIS – State Rep. Dan Surra and members of the House Majority Policy Committee kicked off a series of public hearings in DuBois Tuesday on a plan to extend health insurance to hundreds of thousands of uninsured adults in Pennsylvania.

The hearing focused on a proposal known as Pennsylvania Access to Basic Care, or PA ABC, that was drafted by House Democrats and passed by the House of Representatives earlier this year. The Senate has not yet acted on it.

Surra, who hosted today's meeting, said PA ABC would extend affordable health-insurance coverage, through the private insurance market, to more than 270,000 uninsured adults in Pennsylvania, many of whom are working but cannot get coverage through their employer or cannot access coverage because of a pre-existing condition. This would include immediate coverage for 80,000 Pennsylvania adults who are on the waiting list for the state’s current subsidized insurance program, adultBasic.

"There are more than 8,000 uninsured adults in Elk and Clearfield counties – many of them working full time and supporting families," said Surra, who represents residents in both counties in the General Assembly. "These people face the constant threat of financial disaster if they get sick, need an operation or develop a serious illness.

"Beyond that, all of us have to pay more for health care when the uninsured are forced into emergency rooms for routine care, or when people with diabetes or other long-term illnesses forego treatment and medication because they cannot afford it. When they eventually have no choice but to go to the hospital, the care they need then is much more expensive than managing their disease or illness early on."

State Rep. Todd Eachus, D-Luzerne, chairman of the House Majority Policy Committee, said holding public hearings across the state in communities like DuBois are vital to obtaining information and feedback from everyday citizens, as well as highlighting the need for the Senate to take action on the PA ABC proposal.

"We heard from local organizations and constituents who echoed the sentiment that health-care reform is necessary and critical to working Pennsylvanians," Eachus said. "It’s been nearly six months since House Democrats led the fight to improve access to health insurance for working families and employers by passing PA ABC. And in the meantime hundreds of thousands of people are still without insurance coverage. This plan would provide commonsense, affordable, preventative care to working people all over the state – saving lives and saving money for all Pennsylvanians."

Other components of the PA ABC plan would make $42 million in state grants available to small businesses that already provide coverage to their employees, and assist doctors by continuing to help them pay their medical malpractice insurance premiums for another 10 years.

"We can't lower health-care costs for businesses and individuals while we still have hundreds of thousands of people who are forced to use the emergency room as the family physician or wait until the health problem they do have is an emergency before they seek care," Surra said.

Testifying during today's hearing were: State Deputy Insurance Commissioner George
Hoover; Secretary of Health Calvin Johnson; Past President of the Pa. Medical Society Dr. Mark
Piasio; Free Medical Clinic of DuBois founder and board member Sister Rita Kartavich; and St.
Mary's constituent Crystal Karenchak.

More information about PA ABC is available online at http://www.pahouse.com/ or at Surra's legislative Web site, www.pahouse.com/Surra .