Plan would require all in Ohio to have healthcare

A recommendation presented to Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland would restructure the state's health-insurance landscape by requiring all residents to buy at least a basic benefit plan and mandate insurance companies to offer coverage to anybody who applies. The recommendation also includes a mandate for employers that don't offer health coverage to allow workers to buy coverage using pre-tax dollars, a goal to enroll more Ohioans in Medicaid, and a policy to provide subsidies for people who can't afford coverage. The goal of the plan is to cover 500,000 Ohio residents by 2011. The plan was presented by a healthcare task force established by Strickland in 2007.