Sen. Dean Cameron
The Idaho Senate has unanimously approved legislation setting up a universal pool of vaccines for children that will be funded by insurance companies.
The new pool comes after a decision last year to end state funding for vaccines that led to what Rupert Republican Sen. Dean Cameron called unintended consequences for both physicians and insured parents.
The move required doctors to have two separate stocks of immunizations, one for children with insurance and one for the uninsured. The cost of vaccines increased for some, due to federal rules and some physicians having to buy their own vaccines. Cameron says the new universal pool should result in lower vaccine prices.
Health insurance companies support the new assessments on them, which will be overseen by a new panel, the Idaho Immunization Board. Three of the nine members of the board will represent insurance carriers.
There is a three-year sunset on the new plan, which Cameron said will allow for a review of the system. (IdahoReporter.com)
