Healthy Wisconsin: Executive Order #161

Relating to the Governor's Healthy Wisconsin Initiative

WHEREAS, everyday, parents live in fear that if they or one of their children suffers a serious illness or injury, all of their savings could be lost to cover the health care bills; and

WHEREAS, small business owners worry that if just one employee develops a serious illness, their health care costs could double; and

WHEREAS, while the federal government has failed to make health care more affordable for average families and businesses; and

WHEREAS, Wisconsin has stepped in to control health care costs by lowering prices on prescription drugs, creating health care cooperatives, continuing SeniorCare drug coverage and expanding tax deductions for health insurance premiums; and

WHEREAS, in Wisconsin, we are continuing to improve access to quality affordable health care; and

WHEREAS, a statewide reinsurance pool to provide catastrophic health care coverage has proven successful in dramatically reducing the cost of health insurance premiums and expanding access to affordable health insurance; and

WHEREAS, because the State's fiscal condition limits the ability to provide new state funding, new measures are needed to achieve efficiency in health care delivery, claim more federal revenue for state health care programs and reduce uncompensated care costs;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JIM DOYLE, Governor of the State of Wisconsin by authority vested in me by the Constitution and the Laws of this State, and specifically by Wis. Stat. § 14.019, do hereby:

1. Create the Healthy Wisconsin Council (the "Council"); and
2. Direct the Council to design a statewide reinsurance program that would improve access to affordable health insurance for businesses and individuals and promote disease management, by:

1. Reducing the number of uninsured Wisconsin residents in half by 2010; and
2. Reducing health insurance premiums by as much as 30% for businesses; and
3. Strengthening the individual and small group insurance market; and
4. Increasing the number of businesses that offer comprehensive, affordable health insurance; and

3. Instruct the Council to closely examine and consider:

1. The highly successful Healthy New York program which is currently serving over 100,000 people and has reduced premium costs for businesses by 30%; and
2. Ways other states have increased federal financial support for state health care programs and have expanded health care coverage to more people; and
3. Using both premiums and coinsurance/copays for cost sharing mechanisms; and
4. Identifying existing health insurance regulations and suggesting changes to them that would help the Healthy Wisconsin program be successful; and

4. Direct the Council to develop a range of managed care or actuarially equivalent plans to be offered competitively throughout the state by HMOs and health insurers; and
5. Direct the Council to solicit input from health care industry leaders, health insurance executives, small businesses, major employers, community leaders and interested government agencies; and
6.  Provide that members of the Council shall be appointed by, and serve without compensation at the pleasure of, the Governor; and
7. Provide that the members of the Council will be comprised of no fewer than 18 members; and
8. Provide that the Chairperson of the Council shall be designated by the Governor from among the Council's membership; and
9. Provide that the Council will be staffed by the Department of Administration and the Department of Health and Family Services; and
10. Direct the Council to submit the plan to the Governor by December 1, 2006, detailing recommended actions and key milestone dates to achieve, within the next five years.

Last Revised: July 19, 2006