Where The Rubber Meets the Road in Healthcare

There’s an old saying in politics: don’t rely on what a politician says he’ll do, look at what they’re actually funding if you want to know their real priorities. Let’s look at Ed Rendell’s real priorities for Cover All Pennsylvanians, since he represents this as “universal” health care. To do this we need to look at his budgets because this is where the rubber meets the road.

 
What you’re willing to actually fund is this place. It’s where the rubber meets the road. In his 2007-2008 budget Rendell allocated enough money projected to cover 411,507 Pennsylvanians with his healthcare plan in 2012. Interestingly, his new budget only projects Covering 260,023 Pennsylvanians in 2013. Included in this number are 49,000 people currently covered by Adult Basic so he is only funding coverage for 211,000. Hardly “universal.” 

 
Estimates are that between now and then 240,000 more Pennsylvanians will lose their health insurance. Therefore Rendell’s actual budget priorities, i.e. where the rubber meets the road, leaves a net decrease of 29,000 more Pennsylvanians without basic health care.

 
Cover All Pennsylvanians, based on Gov. Rendell’s own budgets, will leave more of us NOT covered in 2012 than there are today. This is in addition to the 1.2 million Pennsylvanians currently uninsured (according to U.S. Census numbers).

 
When it comes to actual funding Rendell’s Cover All Pennsylvania doesn’t. The tires are bald.