Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report Rounds Up State of the State Addresses

The new year finds governors across the country facing difficult health care choices, as rising costs and increasing Medicaid expenditures combine with the recession to pressure state budgets. Throughout January and February, the governors will give their yearly state-of-the-state addresses, highlighting prior accomplishments and outlining their goals and proposals for the next 12 months. In a series of periodic articles, the Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is summarizing the health care issues discussed in these addresses. The following is a look at the speeches given Jan. 28 -Feb. 6:

• Connecticut: In his speech, Gov. John Rowland (R) said that although the state faces "difficult times," it will "not retrea[t] ... on human services." Over the last seven years, Connecticut has expanded prescription drug coverage for seniors and health insurance coverage for children, Rowland said, adding that funding for mental health services has increased 60%. "That's not retreating from the battle. That's winning the war," Rowland said (Rowland speech text, 2/6).
• Georgia: In his speech, Gov. Roy Barnes (D) said, "Parents ... deserve to know their children will be able to see a doctor if they get sick." Georgia has increased funding for its CHIP program, PeachCare for Kids. PeachCare for Kids now has 200,000 beneficiaries, making it the fifth-largest CHIP program in the nation, Barnes said. Georgia provides health insurance to 33% of state residents under age 18, including 551,000 children who are covered through the state's Medicaid program, Barnes noted (Barnes speech text, 2/6).
• Ohio: In his speech, Gov. Bob Taft (R) said, "[A] safe harbor is exactly what Ohio families need. That means protecting the health of our children and our seniors." Taft noted that since he took office in 1999, the state has provided health benefits to an additional 175,000 children. Taft added, however, that he is "disappointed" the state Legislature has not yet approved his prescription drug program under which seniors could receive 10%-30% discounts on their prescription medications. Taft asked legislators to approve the program by the end of February (Taft speech text, 2/6).
• Oklahoma: In his speech, Gov. Frank Keating (R) noted that in the last year, Oklahoma enacted a "number of initiatives" related to health care, including ones addressing out-of-wedlock births and drug abuse. Keating requested that lawmakers "readdress" those issues and other health-related provisions during the upcoming legislative session (Keating speech text, 2/4).
• Oregon: In his speech, Gov. John Kitzhaber (D) noted that in the past six years Oregon has expanded its Medicaid program, the Oregon Health Plan, but he added that the state faces the "short-term challenge" of balancing an $830 million overall revenue shortfall with "increased demand" for social services, including Medicaid. In response, Kitzhaber said he had planned a special legislative session to "address this budget deficit." During the speech, Kitzhaber proposed increasing the tax on cigarettes by 30 cents per pack "to pay for health care" and taxes on beer and wine by five cents per drink to "help pay for mental health and drug and alcohol treatment" (Kitzhaber speech text, 2/1).
• Rhode Island: In his speech, Gov. Lincoln Almond (R) said that Rhode Island is "No. 1 in the nation" in providing "comprehensive health care" to residents. He said that "virtually all" the state's children are insured, and 94% of the state's adults have health coverage. In addition, Almond said Rhode Island "is well on the way for being known as a major biotech center." To that end, Immunex and Dow, two companies that invest a combined $1 billion in the state, are working with the state's Economic Policy Council to create a "biotech training institute" for high school graduates (Almond speech text, 2/6).
• Tennessee: In his speech, Gov. Don Sundquist (R) said, "[W]hen it comes to health care coverage for children," Tennessee "lead[s] the nation." According to Sundquist, preventive care through TennCare, the state's Medicaid managed care program, is helping to make the state's children "healthy, keep them in school and make them better learners." In addition, Sundquist spoke of an initiative that he started with his wife through which parents of every infant in the state receive an immunization schedule. Partly because of the program, the state's childhood immunization rates in the last seven years rose from 79% to "nearly" 90%, "well above the national average," the governor said. He added, "[W]orking together, we can preserve the promise of available, affordable, quality health care for all Tennesseans ... especially our children" (Sundquist speech text, 2/4).
• Utah: In his speech, Gov. Michael Leavitt (R) noted that in the past six years, immunization rates have "dramatically improved," and 220,000 more residents have health insurance. Leavitt said, however, "[W]e can do more." The governor noted that he submitted a waiver to the federal government that would allow Utah to cover 25,000 more people under Medicaid by reducing benefits to some current beneficiaries (Leavitt speech text, 1/28). Since Leavitt's speech, Utah's waiver proposal has been approved. See story 2 for more details.