California Senate Approves Tax on Health Insurers

California lawmakers went forward with a $196-million plan yesterday to keep nearly 700,000 children on the State’s Healthy Families program. The State Senate passed the measure which taxes health insurance companies in order to fund the program. Check out the following article on the recent development courtesy of LA Times.com.

Reporting from Sacramento - State lawmakers pushed forward Wednesday with a $196-million plan to keep nearly 700,000 children from being yanked off a government health insurance program for the working poor.

The state Senate passed a measure to create a new tax on insurance companies and bring in federal money to rescue the decade-old Healthy Families program, which had been cut deeply in recent months as lawmakers scrambled to balance the state budget.

Assembly officials expressed confidence that they would garner the needed two-thirds vote in the lower house, where the bill is expected to be taken up today. Administration officials said Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger would sign the measure.

"Sitting on our hands in this situation is not an option for California's children," said state Sen. Dave Cox (R-Fair Oaks), one of three Republican lawmakers to break ranks with tax-wary GOP colleagues and join with the majority Democrats in approving the measure 27 to 8.