Oregon Public Broadcasting

Here's a sign of the economic times we're living in. The wait-list for Washington's state-subsidized Basic Health Plan has ballooned to more than 14,000 people in the past few months.

At the same time, the Governor and state lawmakers are proposing to slash more than 40,000 slots from the program.

So what will happen to the people on the program  --  and those waiting for coverage? We have team coverage from Correspondents Doug Nadvornick in Spokane and Austin Jenkins in Olympia.

This is Austin Jenkins. First a bit of history. Washington's Basic Health Plan was created more than 20-years ago to provide health insurance to the working poor  --  who don't have other coverage

Dave Wasser, Health Care Authority: "It covers people up to 200-percent of the federal poverty level  --  that's about $42,000 a year for a family of four."

Dave Wasser is a spokesman for the state agency that manages the Basic Health Plan. Recipients pay on a sliding scale, but taxpayers cover the bulk of the monthly insurance premium. Today the program covers about a hundred thousand Washingtonians. That's where Correspondent Doug Nadvornick in Spokane picks up the story.

Thanks Austin. In the kitchen of Spokane's Perry Street Cafee, co-owner Geoff White is pulverizing a piece of meat. He's making chicken-fried steak. It's only 9 a-m, yet White has already been on his feet for five hours. His heavily-bandaged knee is a little sore, but he's not complaining.

Geoff White: "I have a brand-new knee, thanks to Basic Health."

For years, White and his wife Debbie worked without medical insurance. They couldn't afford a private plan. But then someone told them about Basic Health. Last April, they filled out the paperwork and, within a month, they were covered. In January, Geoff White had his knee replaced.

Geoff White: "Being on my feet anywhere from 10-to-16 hours at a rigorous pace, by the end of the day, it's hell. And now, I'm still in the recouping stage, I'm only three months new, but it's wonderful. And I would have not had it without Basic Health."

Now that he has insurance, White is eager to keep it because it gives him one thing he treasures.

Geoff White: "Security. Knowing that we have it is a very comforting feeling. You don't have to worry about it. It may be minor, you may be healthy, you may be fine. But in the back of your mind, you're always wondering, ëWhat if?'"

Now there's a new "what if?" What if the state decides to cut lots of people off the program? That's what's being proposed in Olympia, right Austin? That's right Doug, Governor Chris Gregoire and her fellow Democrats in the legislature are proposing to slash Basic Health by more than 40-percent to help balance the budget. Representative Eileen Cody chairs the House healthcare committee. She says lawmakers have no choice.

Rep. Eileen Cody: "It's the whole you can't get blood out of a turnip and if you don't the money, you don't have the money. And we just don't have it at this time. It's not like we're sitting it on somewhere and have decided to be cruel to the citizens of the state and deny them healthcare."

State healthcare managers haven't decided how to thin the ranks of the Basic Health Plan since people aren't leaving voluntarily. In fact the irony is just the opposite is happening. Demand for the program is growing by leaps and bounds.

Back in February fewer than 800 people were on a waiting list for the program. Today that number has jumped to nearly 15,000. Representative Doug Ericksen is the ranking Republican on the House healthcare committee. He believes majority Democrats could ease some of the cuts by providing vouchers to help Washingtonians buy health insurance on the open market.

Rep. Doug Ericksen: "To simply come in and say, we're going to cut your Basic Health Plan, we're going to kick you off of this healthcare insurance system but we're not going to reform the underlying market to give you more options  --  that's draconian and that's wrong."

Ericksen also proposes the state remove non-citizens from Basic Health - among other ideas. Democrats haven't embraced that. Instead they continue to discuss a temporary sales tax increase to buy back some of the cuts.