NJ for Health Care Coalition urges Gov. Murphy: Protect our care. Sign these bills

Update: Murphy signed both bills today!  The Star-Ledger' Susan Livio cites the Coalition letter linked to below.
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New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy has been notably quiet about two ACA-defense bills awaiting his signature -- one creating a state individual mandate, the other directing the Dept. of Banking and Insurance to seek federal funding for a reinsurance program for the individual market.

The bills passed both houses of the legislature on April 12; the Governor has until June 7 to act. His hesitation, if there's more to it than due diligence, may stem from fiscal worries about the reinsurance program, as I've noted before.

Today the NJ Coalition for Health Care, an umbrella group of advocacy groups, trade groups, and unions led by New Jersey Citizen Action, sent a letter to Governor Murphy urging him to sign the bills. 17 organizations signed, including BlueWaveNJ, a group I volunteer for. The text is available here.

Two NJ healthcare bills awaiting Gov. Murphy's signature should reduce premiums by 20-30% in the individual market

On April 12, both houses of the New Jersey legislature passed bills to establish a state individual mandate (A3380) and a reinsurance program (S1878). The bills are designed to work in tandem to stabilize and reduce premiums in the individual market for health insurance.

It is not certain that Governor Phil Murphy will sign the bills. A mandate is a tax, and taxes are hard. The reinsurance program will cost the state some money, though not much -- probably an amount in the low tens of millions each year. But the payoff would be dramatic. Taken together, as outlined below, the bills can be expected reduce premiums in the individual market 20-30% compared to what they would be if neither bill is enacted.