Richmond, Virginia – Delegate Clifford “Clay” Athey, Jr. (R-Warren), Chairman of the House Republican Policy Committee, was joined today by Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling, Delegate R. Steven Landes (R- Augusta), and Delegate Jeffrey M. Frederick (R-Prince William) for a policy briefing highlighting Health Care reform initiatives sponsored by House Republicans.

Delegate Landes’ legislation, HB 786, provides a credit against individual income taxes for certain long-term care insurance premiums paid by the individual during the taxable year. This important initiative encourages Virginians to purchase private coverage for the long-term health care needs, rather than seeking Medicaid as a first option. Delegate Landes added, “What we're looking at is all the baby boomers coming of age simultaneously, and that’s going to wreak havoc on our health care system. This is a way of trying to encourage people to start taking care of themselves and their families for long-term care.”

Delegate Landes also introduced HJ 97, which directs the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) to study the extent to which asset transfers are being used to shelter assets in order to qualify for Medicaid long-term care services. Legal advisors helping Virginians to circumvent a system designed to cover the neediest citizens are become more prevalent. This study would determine what measures can be taken to discourage abuse of the system and return integrity to the program. Delegate Landes noted, “This is commonsense consumer protection, if people are taking advantage of the system by shielding assets, we need to work to prevent it. It's a proactive approach to prevent fraud, and at the same time protect the system and those who need it.”

Delegate Frederick, who serves as the Vice-Chairman of the Virginia Small Business Commission, has co-chief patroned with Delegate Hamilton HB 761, which authorizes the establishment of cooperatives for the purpose of arranging group health benefit plan coverage for small employers. Delegate Frederick commented, “Providing small businesses with greater opportunity to offer health care coverage to their employees will mean more Virginians have access to health care. This will save taxpayers money, and be a big help to small businesses who are increasingly being burdened by skyrocketing health care costs. Small businesses are the Commonwealth’s largest employer and our biggest generator of new jobs. We need to continue to do all we can to empower small business to succeed.”

Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling added, “I applaud the effort of House Republicans to make health care a priority during this legislative session. By empowering small business to provide health insurance for their employees, and by controlling the cost of long term care, we will take a major step toward making quality healthcare more available and more affordable for every Virginian."

Delegate Athey concluded, “This is the latest in a series of daily press briefings detailing another facet of the House Republican Agenda. The House Republican Caucus is one of ideas, reforms, innovation, and progress. The reform agenda we are advancing is the right policy at the right time for Virginians.”

Speaker Howell and House Republicans initiated “Daily Policy Briefings” last year as part of a coordinated effort to identify and communicate sensible policy solutions. The purpose of the briefings is to provide an opportunity to learn more about the ambitious, broad-based and forward-looking agenda that House Republicans are championing.