SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 82
(By Senators Prezioso, Stollings, Jenkins,
Foster, Hunter, Green,
Boley, Hall, Sprouse and Guills)
[Originating in the Committee on Health and Human Resources]
Requesting the Joint Committee on Government and Finance appoint a
select interim committee to study health care reform options.
Whereas, West Virginia citizens engage in some of the
unhealthiest lifestyles in the United States. For example, in 1990,
the West Virginia rate of adult obesity was 15 percent, compared
with a national rate of 11.6 percent. By 2000, the state rate was
23.2 percent, compared with a national rate of 20.1 percent.
Obesity is a known risk factor for heart disease, diabetes,
hypertension, gallbladder disease, osteoarthritis, sleep apnea and
other breathing problems and some cancers, including uterine,
breast, colorectal, kidney and gallbladder; and
Whereas, West Virginia has one of the highest rates of tobacco
use in the United States with 27.3 percent of West Virginians
smoking and 7.7 percent using smokeless tobacco; and
Whereas, West Virginia ranks first in the United States in
prevalence of hypertension with more than a third of adults diagnosed with high blood pressure; and
Whereas, Fewer than two in 10 West Virginians consume the
recommended five servings of fruits and vegetables per day; and
Whereas, West Virginia ranks first in the United States in the
prevalence of arthritis at 37.2 percent of the population; and
Whereas, The medical rate of inflation exceeds growth in wages
and exceeds the overall rate of inflation; and
Whereas, The high cost of health care has forced employers,
particularly small employers, to drop health insurance coverage for
their employees; and
Whereas, West Virginia has one of the highest percentages of
citizens who are uninsured, with 322,000 West Virginians uninsured
in 2005, which is an increase of 11 percent over the previous year;
and
Whereas, The American College of Physicians has determined
that "uninsured Americans tend to be sicker and die earlier than
privately insured Americans" and the Institute of Medicine has
concluded that 18,000 uninsured Americans die prematurely each
year; and
Whereas, The uninsured delay seeking treatment, have their
illness diagnosed at a more advanced staged and are frequently
treated in the most expensive settings possible, i.e., emergency
rooms and hospitals; and
Whereas, West Virginia hospitals in 2005 provided slightly more than half a billion dollars in uncompensated health care,
increasing the cost of health care to privately insured West
Virginians; and
Whereas, State insurance programs may not pay the cost of
health care provided to their insured by physicians and hospitals,
further increasing the cost of health care to privately insured
West Virginians; therefore, be it
Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Joint Committee on Government and Finance is hereby
requested to appoint a select interim committee to study health
care reform options; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the study should include measures to
improve the health status of West Virginians, measures to reduce
the cost of health care and options for extending health care
insurance coverage to uninsured West Virginians; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Select Committee on Health Care
report to the regular session of the Legislature, 2008, on its
findings, conclusions and recommendations, together with drafts of
any legislation necessary to effectuate its recommendations; and,
be it
Further Resolved, That the expenses necessary to conduct this
study, to prepare a report and to draft necessary legislation be
paid from legislative appropriations to the Joint Committee on
Government and Finance.
Email
Webmaster | © 2024 West Virginia Legislature **
