Why Crist Kept Cover Florida UnderCover

Gov. Charlie Crist has voiced his opposition to President Barack Obama's health care reform. Crist maintains the private market is the best way to cover the uninsured. Crist has bragged about Cover Florida - a public-private partnership.

During the 2008 legislative session, my administration worked with legislators of both parties to secure unanimous approval of the Cover Florida Health Care Access Program. This legislation makes affordable health coverage available to 3.8 million uninsured Floridians through a comprehensive market-based strategy.

One little problem. Only 3,700 Floridians are covered by Cover Florida. Likely Senate race opponent Kendrick Meek noted 3,560 Floridians lose their insurance every week. Cover Florida is obviously not a solution for people without health insurance.

``We have seen the hypocrisy of leadership in the state of Florida, just doing enough to say healthcare insurance is provided,'' Meek said, noting that Florida has one of the highest rates of uninsured children in the nation. Overall, about one in five Floridians is uninsured.

Meek made his comments during a conference call hosted by the liberal advocacy group Families USA, which released a study showing that, since 2000, average insurance premiums rose 98 percent to $13,497 a year. But in that time, the median income of Floridians rose just 27 percent to $28,836 a year.

Crist all shiny happy Governor over Cover Florida. That explains why Crist won't spend money to advertise for the program. It might be because there is no guarantee you will get to keep your doctor under the Cover Florida plan.

Once plans begin enrolling consumers, you will need to contact the Cover Florida plan for which you wish to enroll to see if your current physician is included in their network.

The Cover Florida plans do not cover for hospitalization. The Cover Florida plan is confusingly different from county to county. The insurance companies are offering crap policies for pure PR purposes. Cover Florida really won't cover major health insurance needs. That is why so few people have signed up.

Cover Florida plans can be purchased for as low as $23.70 per month. However, the rates for Cover Florida plans vary depending on the applicant’s age, gender and chosen benefit options. Typically, preventive plans do not cover hospitalization; however, have lower monthly premiums than catastrophic hospitalization benefit plans. See the plan details in the “Available Plans” section of the www.CoverFloridaHealthCare.com Web site to see examples of rates.

Go to Cover Florida web site. Click the available plans page. Only residents in the counties Broward, Flagler, Miami-Dade and Volusia are covered. Click the plans out find no health insurance company covers for hospital stays for basic coverage. The more expensive plans call for out-of-pocket payments. Cover Florida can deny medical payment for one year, if a pre-existing condition is discovered. The various do not guarantee a patient will not be dropped. Crist can keep his health reform.