CA Governor Nixes Employer Health Bill
“A.B. 8,” a California Assembly bill passed during the regular legislative session that would have required employers to provide health insurance to their employees or pay a tax to the state, has been terminated by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The coverage would have amounted to 7.5 percent of payroll or an equivalent amount paid in tax to the state, which would have provided health coverage to the employers’ workers for them.
Schwarzenneger said, “This bill does not achieve coverage for all—a critical step needed to reduce health care costs for everyone. Instead, A.B. 8 puts more pressure on an already broken health care system and places an unreasonable financial burden on businesses. A 7.5% fee would force employers to shoulder the entire burden of health care reform—a devastating blow to small business in California.”
Gov. Schwarzenegger’ introduced his own health reform plan in bill form just last week.
Published on October 16, 2007
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