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REMARKS BY: TOMMY G. THOMPSON, SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES PLACE: National Governors Association Annual Meeting, Providence, Rhode Island DATE: August 3, 2001
I want to thank Governor Almond for hosting this conference and to thank all of you for the opportunity of being with you. Governor Glendenning, congratulations on your leadership of this wonderful organization over the past year. Governor Engler, I know you will lead your colleagues with distinction in your year as chairman.
As you know, President Bush and I were governors. We understand what it takes to govern a state . to bring diverse agendas and ideas together . to build consensus, work with a bureaucratic system and get things done. We appreciate you and what you're doing.
It's an honor to serve a President like George W. Bush, who combines deep compassion with deep conviction . and common sense with a vision for the future.
That vision is rooted, in part, in the President's experience as a governor. As all of you know, governors don't sit and ponder - they have to make things work, get things done, see tangible results. That's President Bush's philosophy, and it's mine, too. So let me spend a few minutes talking with you about something we're doing at the Department of Health and Human Services that will make a tremendous difference in the lives of people throughout our great country.
When I arrived at HHS in late January, there was a huge backlog of state waiver requests and state plan amendments that you had requested over the years. Some of them dated back to the mid-1980s. That was as astonishing as it was unacceptable.
My staff and I went to work and, as of today, I've approved nearly 900 Medicaid and SCHIP state plan amendments and waivers. The backlog is nearly gone, and I'm happy to report that more than 800,000 Americans have access to care than just a few months ago.
Through state plan amendments and waivers, we've also increased benefits for 2.5 million Americans who already have coverage. And we've just learned, as of yesterday, that the number of uninsured in our country has dropped from 42.6 million to 39.3 million, an 8 percent drop. This is due, in part, to our asking more specific questions of people who report not having certain types of coverage. This has helped us find out how best to target resources to ensure that more Americans gain the coverage they need.
That's good news. And our efforts have made a good start. But there's so much more we can do. So, today, we are providing you, the nation's governors, the tools you need to provide care to the families in your states who don't have the resources to meet their health care needs.
So, working with the President, we've developed a new program that will provide better health care for the millions of Americans who lack medical insurance or access to affordable care. The President announced the program a short time ago on his weekly nationwide radio address, and I'm here today to outline to you how it will work.
It's called the Health Insurance Flexibility and Accountability Initiative. This new model waiver program makes it faster . easier . and simpler for states to expand access to health insurance to low-income citizens through Medicaid and through SCHIP demonstrations.
The program is budget neutral . and it's a partnership between Washington and the states. It's not top- down. We want to work with you, in partnership, to expand health insurance to the most vulnerable and needy members of our society . most especially, to those whose incomes are under 200 percent of the poverty level.
You know what works best in your home states. You know the specific needs of your people. We've designed the model waiver program to give you the tools and the flexibility you need to advance benefits and quality care to those back home who need it the most.
The model waiver program has four main elements, all related to helping you better coordinate and access Medicaid and SCHIP funds.
First, states will have more flexibility to design benefit packages that promote expanded access to health insurance. The oldest clich‚ in the book is that one size doesn't fit all - but it's a clich‚ because it's true. What works in Wyoming doesn't necessarily work in New Jersey.
And within your states, different populations have different needs. We want to allow you to expand healthcare coverage to more individuals and families who may not be eligible for Medicaid and SCHIP under current law.
Second, the model waiver program places a special emphasis on coordinating Medicaid and SCHIP with private-sector insurance programs. That kind of coordination will help provide more seamless coverage for people with limited incomes. People on the low end of advantage deserve better than a confusing array of public- and private-sector programs. The model waiver program will help knit all the resources together in a way that's easy to follow and easy to use.
Third, in exchange for up-front flexibility, we ask that you set goals for reducing the number of residents without health insurance and then let us know how you are doing toward reaching that goal.
In other words, we're asking for a measurement of success. Measuring the progress of your programs is something many of you do already. But we need to get a better handle on how many people need help . and how many are getting it.
Fourth and finally, we're making a new electronic application available online to make it simpler, faster and easier for states to seek and implement new approaches to promote access to health insurance. We're going to put a model waiver application online to help expedite the process.
You shouldn't have to engage in time-consuming guesswork about what application might work best. We're going to show you up-front and give guidance as to what steps to take to get your waiver applications through quickly and efficiently.
The model waiver program is innovative . it's flexible . it's cost-efficient . and it reaches potentially millions of people who desperately need care. And it's typical of the bold and innovative work governors around the country have done for years.
We're eager to work with you on the model waiver program and on other things, such as welfare reform. I know you heard from Ron Haskins a little while ago. He's a man who's always full of good ideas. And I'm sure many of you know Wade Horn, my new Assistant Secretary at the Administration for Children and Families. He finally got confirmed and sworn in this week, and he's already started working on an action plan for TANF reauthorization.
Let me quickly throw out a couple of ideas for you to start thinking about. John (Engler), I know you and I have talked about developing a working group of governors to work with my Department and the White House, and we need to pursue that and formalize how it will work.
The folks at the NGA have also been working on setting up some roundtables. John, I believe you invited me to one of them scheduled for next month, and I hope I'm able to join you.
Let me also suggest a series of regional roundtables or listening sessions where Wade and I can come to you to hear about what we need to be focusing on as we work to reauthorize TANF. We hope to hold five around the country by the end of this year, and can't wait until Congress starts working on TANF next year.
I know from experience that many of the new ideas for the changes we need to make in TANF will come from the governors and the states. I look forward to working with each of you on this issue so important to families across America.
And let me thank each of you for your work on organ donation. Many of you have implemented plans to encourage organ and tissue donation. Others of you have plans in the development stage. This is a passion for me, and at HHS we've developed a full-scale program, including a sample organ donation card, I hope you will look at closely and use in your own states. Organ donation is literally about saving lives. Our program is about common sense . compassion . and innovation.
During my 14 years as a governor - innovation was my watchword. And being with you, the nation's leading group of innovators, reminds me of something one of my heroes, Teddy Roosevelt, said many years ago. He was a governor before he was President and regularly upset the pundits and naysayers with bold, innovative ideas and policies.
"It is not what we have that will make us a great nation," he said, "It is the way in which we use it." We have been blessed with remarkable resources. As Teddy Roosevelt said, though, we have to use them wisely . boldly . and with a commitment to building a stronger country and a better society for everyone.
The new model waiver program flows out of that commitment, and I know each you share in its spirit and will use it for the good of families in your states. It's been a pleasure being with you. Thank you very much.