Dear Neighbor,
Session is going by quickly as we work to pass bills that will improve the lives of average Minnesotans. Here is what I’ve been working on.
Affordable Health Care For All
The debate continues at the Capitol around the best way to move toward affordable health care for all.
A bill has been introduced that would create a state funded health plan for the 2-3% of Minnesotans who buy health insurance in the individual market. This new plan has been promoted as something new that gets people away from dealing with insurance companies, but it just layers on a new form of the same system, by providing a new private insurance option through MNsure, Minnesota’s health insurance marketplace. It would provide state subsidies to make the plan more affordable and deliver better benefits for those few Minnesotans. For the Minnesotans who qualify, this plan could be great. However, for the other 97% it will do nothing except, perhaps, increase state taxes.
For years I have been working to remove private Managed Care Organizations, MCOs, from Minnesota’s taxpayer-funded healthcare programs. MCOs are misnamed, because they manage money, not care. Having MCOs run public healthcare programs is an enormous waste of public dollars and does not deliver the care that Minnesotans expect. Many Minnesotans now understand this and are ready to get “big insurance” out of healthcare. I believe we are on the verge of making real progress if we keep moving toward the goal of having every Minnesotan in one big risk pool.
This week, I introduced an alternative plan to help pay out-of-pocket costs for people who buy insurance on the individual market, which would make that insurance much more usable to help enrollees get health care. This is not a systemic solution either, but it would be available sooner and would help those people who are buying insurance that they can’t afford to use.
There is no perfect solution in healthcare, but there are solutions that move us in the right direction and they are better than those that make systemic reform harder to achieve.
Debt Fairness Act
Medical debt is the leading cause of bankruptcy in the country. Unlike other kinds of debt, medical debt is often out of a person’s control. Getting sick is no one’s fault, and no one should be financially devastated because of something out of their control. That’s why DFLers have introduced the Debt Fairness Act. Worse, people with medical debt are often unable to get medical treatment when they need it. The Debt Fairness Act aims to unburden Minnesotans from medical debt, and help working and middle class families make ends meet.
MPCA Small Business Environmental Loan Program
If your small business is looking to reduce on-site air emissions, clean up contamination, or generate less waste be sure to apply for the MPCA Small Business Environmental Loan program. The program offers zero-interest loans up to $75,000 to tackle these high-impact projects. You can learn more and apply here.
Tax Reforms to Benefit Minnesotans
I support a tax system that is fair to families, seniors, and working Minnesotans. Last year, I voted for a tax bill that has now made Minnesota the most fairly taxed state in the nation. This means rather than providing giveaways to wealthiest among us and large corporations, Democrats are ensuring that Minnesotans with modest incomes will have more money in their pockets and the economic stability they need to thrive. For instance our child tax credit will benefit working families by providing up to $1,750 for each dependent. Changes to the taxation of Social Security income will mean that for the vast majority of seniors, there won’t be state taxes on the money they get from Social Security.
Staying in Touch
Please contact me with your questions, comments, and concerns, or if I can ever be of assistance. The best way to reach me is to email me at rep.tina.liebling@house.mn.gov. Please be sure to include your postal address so I’ll know you are my constituent. If you call my Capitol office at 651-296-0573 and leave a message, please include your email and street address.
Thank you for allowing me to represent you.
Warmly,
Tina