AMA to look anew at insurance mandate

The new world of health savings accounts prompts the Association to study whether to back mandatory coverage.

By David Glendinning, AMNews staff. Nov. 28, 2005.

Dallas -- The American Medical Association decided it is not ready to support a requirement for all Americans to obtain health insurance, but some members believe it is only a matter of time before the Association embraces the concept.

AMA delegates at the Interim Meeting referred for further study a resolution to support federal legislation that would implement such a personal mandate. Under this plan, all Americans would be required at least to have catastrophic and preventive health care coverage. People with incomes between 200% and 400% of the poverty level who are not eligible for Medicaid or the State Children's Health Insurance Program would be able to claim refundable tax credits to help pay for the insurance.

The resolution introduced by the California and Guam delegations is not a new concept. But the level of support among AMA members appears to be greater than it has been during the last decade or so that the Association has been debating the merits of an individual mandate, supporters said. Delegates were vocal about the potential of such a plan despite the decision to refer the directive for further study and possible action at the 2006 Annual Meeting.

Federal action to combat the uninsured problem by passing on more responsibility to those who can purchase insurance is coming down the road, and the AMA is starting to embrace the concept, said Robert Hertzka, MD, immediate past president of the California Medical Assn. and one of the authors of the resolution. He pointed to a survey of 5,400 members before the meeting that found that 82% of respondents backed AMA involvement in pushing such a plan.