Senators have the same plan as their janitors. I had it when I worked at the VA.
But in truth, the "as good as Congress" standard promoted by Wyden, President Obama and others in the debate over health care reform is not so exclusive after all.
Wyden and other members of Congress use the same health care program as every other federal employee, whether that employee works as a Forest Service manager in the Deschutes National Forest, as a meteorologist for NOAA in Hawaii, or as a janitor in the Bureau of Engraving in D.C.
The program covers 8.5 million employees and family members. Federal workers pay part of the cost for their health care. And like employees across America, they've seen those costs go up each year
The federal health plan offers among the best choices in any workplace. Because of its enormous size and market power, insurers participating in the federal plan cannot deny coverage to workers who have pre-existing conditions. The plans are portable, meaning if that Forest Service worker from Oregon gets transferred to Idaho or Florida, or even overseas, the coverage follows.
And because the pool of potential customers is so large and potentially lucrative, insurance companies trip over themselves to be part of the system. It's why federal workers in Washington, D.C. have 23 different plans to choose from and why most federal employees in Oregon have around a dozen.
oregonlive.com  |
