Statement by Pedro Morillas, CALPIRG Legislative Advocate:
“We applaud the Senate for passing AB 8 (Núñez) this
afternoon.
“Regulating the insurance companies must be part of any meaningful
health care reform. CALPIRG supports AB 8, in large part because the bill grants
Californians access to more affordable health insurance.
“AB 8 sharply limits the insurance companies’ ability to
deny consumers health care coverage, which far to many Californians experience
when shopping for coverage today. AB 8 requires insurance companies to use
community rating to determine their premium costs, so that individuals are
guaranteed a fair price for health insurance. AB 8 also requires insurance
companies to spend 85 percent of premium dollars on health care, assuring
consumers that their monthly premiums are working to keep us healthy.
“Health insurance industry reforms like those in AB 8 are
essential to containing the skyrocketing cost of health care. As this bill
moves forward and the health care debate continues, we urge the Legislature and
Governor Schwarzenegger to continue to make insurance industry reforms a key
part of the solution.”
