UPDATE: House GOP Health-Care Plan Omits Key Insurance Reform

(UPDATES 5th paragraph with more details.)

 
   By Corey Boles 
   Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES 
 

WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- A House Republican health-care bill wouldn't seek to prevent health insurance companies from denying sick people insurance, Minority Leader John Boehner (R., Ohio) said Monday.

Republicans haven't released full details of the party's bill, but Boehner said the legislative proposal would be made public in the next couple of days.

The bill would allow insurance firms to sell policies across state lines, permit small businesses to pool together to bring down costs they face, implement changes to medical malpractices, and give state governments more flexibility to pursue rule changes in their states.

The absence of a requirement to end the practice of insurers being allowed to deny coverage to people who are already ill or have pre-existing conditions would be a significant difference between Democratic and Republican health-care overhaul proposals directly impacting the insurance industry.

Republicans would prevent insurers from ending policies once an individual becomes seriously ill, unless that individual had committed fraud.

They would include other proposals included in Democratic legislation, such as removing lifetime and annual bans on the cost of health-care benefits policyholders can receive.

Boehner also said Monday that the Republican plan wouldn't include tax credits for people who buy insurance individually rather than through their employer. He cited the cost of providing those credits as a reason why they wouldn't be included. House Democrats could bring their health-care legislation to the floor to begin debate later this week.

-By Corey Boles, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-6601; corey.boles@dowjones.com

-Patrick Yoest contributed to this article.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 02, 2009 19:10 ET (00:10 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2009 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.