Pennsylvania governor pushes on health coverage

AP/Philadelphia Inquirer, September 11, 2008

Healthcare negotiations with some Pennsylvania Senate Republicans are progressing and could result in a deal to cover hundreds of thousands of uninsured adults and pay for generic prescription drugs, Gov. Ed Rendell said during a recent conference call. The surplus in a tobacco-tax-funded account that helps doctors pay malpractice premiums has grown so large, Rendell said, that the state can insure about 200,000 more adults in the first year and about 400,000 adults within three years. He is now urging the General Assembly to add more session days before the Nov. 4 election to work on healthcare legislation.