Huntsman has yet to endorse the plan, aimed at reducing the number of uninsured in the state. But Utah Health Department Director David Sundwall and other members of a governor-appointed task force have been quietly shopping it around to lawmakers.
Sundwall met earlier this week with Republican legislative leaders and said he is convinced they are equally committed to resolving the health care crisis. But Sundwall acknowledged government mandates are a tough sell in conservative Utah.
"The problem with mandates is, how do you enforce them? What's the penalty? Are we going to throw parents in jail for refusing to insure their children? I don't think so," said Sundwall on Friday, after unveiling pieces of the plan during a panel discussion at an anti-poverty conference.
More than a year ago, Huntsman tasked a working group with devising a scheme to halve by 2010 the number of Utahns without health coverage. After much deliberation, the group decided to focus on insuring kids and helping small business owners and their workers afford coverage.
Conservative health department estimates put the state's total uninsured population at 292,800. The U.S. Census reports a higher figure at 420,000, or 16.6 percent of the population.
Advocates for children and low-income families are generally pleased with the working group's focus but decline to pass judgment without knowing more.
While Sundwall divulged parts of the plan on Friday, details are still scarce.
The first step, he said, would be to require that all children entitled to Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) be enrolled.
Doing so would add 52,000 children to the rolls. That's a big chunk of the 71,000 Utahns under 18 thought to be uninsured.
For middle- and higher-income families, Utah would look to the private insurance industry to create options, said Sundwall. The state might also allow families to buy into CHIP at the full premium cost, he said.
Coverage would be mandatory for children from birth to age 18. But Sundwall said "we're considering extending the requirement" to include 19- to 26-year-olds.
How much all this would cost taxpayers is unknown. Huntsman has previously pegged the price at between $22 million and $25 million.
But Lt. Gov. Gary Herbert, who also spoke at Friday's conference, stressed Huntsman is not looking to grow government. The governor promotes, instead, "public/private" partnerships with charities and private insurers, Herbert said.
Private insurers have yet to buy off on Sundwall's plan, said Kelly Atkinson, director of the Utah Health Insurance Association. "They've asked us to price a basic health plan, but they haven't told us what they'd like it to cover. Until then, we can't say how affordable it will be."
Atkinson acknowledged most insurers would welcome more children, considering they tend to be healthy and cheaper to cover. But he said he doubts a parental mandate will pass muster with the Legislature.
kstewart@sltrib.com
