Schwarzenegger Health Care Plan Bites the Dust

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s multibillion dollar health care plan was rejected as too expensive by the California State Senate’s Health Committee, putting him to the left of even that predominantly Democratic body.

The Schwarzenegger plan would dramatically increase the role of the state in the health care system, relying on tax increases and manipulation of the federal Medicaid system to increase federal subsidies.

Like many proposals to expand states’ role in health care, the Schwarzenegger plan probably violated the federal ERISA law through its employer mandates. That doesn’t seem to have been a big factor in the State Senate’s decision, though.

Nor does the fact that the Schwarzenegger plan would have covered illegal immigrants. That infuriated people on talk radio, but seems to have had little effect on the legislature.