Portland , OR – In July, Ron and Sen. Gordon Smith announced bipartisan legislation creating a pilot program to provide health insurance for uninsured Americans and those with catastrophic health care costs . Under the legislation, the Catastrophic Health Coverage Promotion Act, Oregon would be guaranteed one of the pilot projects.

Over 600,000 people in Oregon went without health insurance in 2004; during the same year, Oregon hospitals provided over $500,000,000 in uncompensated care, a 262 percent increase since 1995. When individuals cannot pay for their medical expenses, the cost must be absorbed by taxpayers and medical providers or passed along to consumers. To alleviate this financial burden, the legislation establishes pilot health insurance programs for individuals and small businesses as well as providing assistance for catastrophic health problems.

Ron and Sen. Smith unveiled the proposal in several Oregon cities in July, making stops in Portland, Eugene, Medford and Redmond to discuss their bipartisan health care legislation.