San Francisco has its own 'public option'

San Francisco has its own 'public option'
Its city-run universal healthcare effort enrolls more than 46,000 adults and has received high marks in recent independent studies.


Yonny Interian, a server at Zazie Restaurant, is eligible for health insurance, dental coverage and a 401(k) because the restaurant's owner, Jennifer Piallat, put a $1-per-person surcharge on the menu to pay for the benefits. (Dave Getzschman / For The Times / September 23, 2009)

By Maria L. La Ganga

October 4, 2009


Reporting from San Francisco - Over the last two years, three-quarters of San Francisco's uninsured adults have enrolled in a public program that guarantees access to medical services, an effort that is being touted as a national model during the rancorous debate over healthcare reform.

More than 46,000 adults have enrolled in Healthy San Francisco since it was launched; this first-in-the- nation, city-run universal healthcare effort has received high marks in recent independent studies.

The program is funded in part by an employer mandate, a controversial component of the plans under discussion in Washington. One analysis has concluded that this mandate on employers with 20 or more workers has not driven businesses away. Patient satisfaction is high, according to another recent survey.

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But here's what it does do: Any uninsured adult who lives in San Francisco and earns up to 500% of the federal poverty level annually is eligible. That's $54,150 for individuals and $110,250 for a family of four. (Children are covered under a separate city-run program.)

Patients must pay a quarterly participation fee based on their annual income, along with certain co-payments for services. But care is free for those earning 100% of the federal poverty level or below -- about 70% of all participants.

Patients must pick a medical home out of a network of more than 30 public and private clinics, physician groups and hospitals within the city limits. The idea is that patients get consistent care and the system avoids duplicating services. Although about half of the network is government-run, Kaiser Permanente just joined and plans to accept up to 3,000 patients.

Patients receive preventive services, such as mammograms and colonoscopies, care when they are sick or injured and ongoing treatment for chronic conditions. Prescriptions are covered. So are hospital stays, which cost participants no more than $200 per day at San Francisco General Hospital.

more...

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-sf-healthcare4-2009oct04,0,2622700.story?track=rss

The depth of field of the background is all wrong. The waiter's leg is also not pressing against the old guy's leg, kinky as that otherwise sounds...

There's no way that can be real...

What would be the purpose of photoshopping it? I have no clue, it could be, but what would be the point?

by simply opening it up to all Minnesota residents.