Home | Entries [Previous |Next]
0 Comments
Daily Dose for April 25, 2006
Daily Dose
Republicans Blast CoverTN -- Several Republican lawmakers lined up to grill Finance Commissioner Dave Goetz yesterday on Governor Phil Bredesen's new health care program dubbed CoverTN. The program which would allow for additional medical coverage at a price for high risk patients would require an increase in the state's tobacco tax. Goetz said if a tobacco tax does not pass, and there are problems with funding, "We’ll just have to say the game’s over, time up, pull the plug." Rep. Frank Nicely, Sen. Mae Beavers, Sen. David Fowler, and GOP Gubernatorial candidate Sen. Jim Bryson all lined up to criticize the bill, either calling it not enough or criticizing the funding mechanism. The TennCare advocacy group Tennessee Health Care Campaign also criticized some aspects of the plan as not doing enough to provide coverage to uninsurable adults while at the same time renewing their criticism of Bredesen’s TennCare cuts. Following a press conference by THCC, the Bredesen administration passed out state medical disclosure forms to the media, partly based on concerns that the former enrollees weren’t telling the whole truth about their coverage. The group's leader says the Bredesen administration is trying to "threaten the media" into not printing stories about TennCare patient's plight after being disenrolled.
Federal Law Could Drop More from TennCare -- A bill to drop illegal immigrants from the nation's healthcare rolls could also drop legal residents on TennCare who cannot show proof of identity. The new requirement is part of the federal Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 and would require those signing up for state-supported medical care to present a valid form of identification to include a birth certificate or passport. Advocates say that many recepients in rural communities have neither one of those since a higher percentage of births happen in private homes rather than hospitals.
Dems Glimmer of Hope Drops Out of District 11 Race -- Jim Hall, former chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, considered a viable candidate to gain Sen. David Fowler's seat in Senate District 11 for Democrats is dropping out of the race. The move virtually ensures that Republican Rep. Bo Watson will move up to fill the seat since he is the only candidate running in the race. Since April 13 was the deadline to withdraw from legislative primaries, Hall will remain on Hamilton County Democratic ballots in August, however. The Tennessee Democratic Party had considered Hall's race a state-wide target for gains in the Senate.
Knox County Wouldn't End With Charter Invalidation -- Knox County Law Director Mike Moyers says County officials in Knox Co. wouldn't have to quit their day jobs if the Courts invalidated Knox Co.'s move to a special charter form of government. That's because the State Legislature had already passed several private acts governing the county before it adopted its new charter. Those private acts, passed under the constitutionally defined government are still valid. Several County Commissioners in Knox Co. are sueing the county on the grounds that the charter form of government was never properly implimented and thus the referendum passed by voters in 1994 limiting commissioners to two terms is not valid.
Senate Candidates Agree on Illegal Immigration -- Republicans in the race to replace Sen. Frist are distancing themselves from the Bush administration on illegal immigration, according to the Tennessean. Democratic candidate Harold Ford, Jr. joined his Republican counterparts in opposing amnesty and guest worker programs. There are some differences, though: Hilleary is the only one who talks about authorizing local police to help enforce immigration laws. Ford is the only one who talks about encouraging liberty and opportunity in other countries as one way to stop illegal border crossers. And Ford and Corker say there might be good reasons for the government to issue some official tests and forms in languages other than English. Bryant and Hilleary don't.
