Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, February 6, 1992 TAG: 9202060243
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ROB EURE and GREG SCHNEIDER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium
HOSPITAL TAX PLAN AILING
The medical tax package that Gov. Douglas Wilder has pushed with single-minded vigor since the General Assembly convened last month appeared Wednesday to need major surgery to survive.Amid grim predictions of the bill's demise from senior legislators, the Wilder administration began working covertly to find some deal that could save it.
"We're wheeling and dealing now," an administration official said Wednesday night.
"The votes are there now to not pass it in its present form," said Sen. Clarence Holland, D-Virginia Beach.
Sen. Stanley Walker, D-Norfolk, who is carrying Wilder's bill in the Senate, suggested one potential compromise: impose the tax on hospitals, doctors and nursing homes for only the next two years.
But the so-called sunset clause was not enough to shake opposition from the health-care lobby.
"Does the sunset improve it? Sure," said Virginia Hospital Association President Laurens Sartoris. "Does the sunset make it more palatable? Sure. But the sunset doesn't solve our problems."
The powerful hospital lobby is leading the fight against Wilder's proposal, which would generate $60 million to help cover state Medicaid payments.
Hospitals say it's unfair to make them pay for a societal problem - health care for the poor - and that the tax would just be passed on to consumers.
Wilder counters that greed in the health-care industry has helped drive costs higher, and that hospitals could absorb the tax with minor budget trimming.
The governor's populist appeal, including rallies and speeches around the state, has so far failed to inspire many votes in the General Assembly.
Del. Lewis Parker, D-Mecklenburg, who introduced Wilder's proposed tax in the House, just shook his head Wednesday when asked how it was faring. "I don't think it has much of a chance, especially if the Senate kills it first," he said.
Walker took his proposal to the Senate Finance Committee for a hearing Wednesday, and Parker's version sits in the House Finance panel. Legislators say Wilder has not mustered enough votes to pass the tax in either committee, with the deadline for action just over a week away.
The health-care industry faces deadlines today set by the chairmen of the House and Senate panels to offer compromises or ideas to replace the $60 million.
"Your suggestions will receive a warmth of embrace in this committee," said Senate Finance Chairman Hunter Andrews, D-Hampton, who on Wednesday presented his own list of budget cuts the panel could use to close the gap.
Sartoris gave little indication that his group is interested in bargaining, although he said "there's always room for compromise."
House Majority Leader Richard Cranwell, D-Vinton, who heads the House Finance Committee, warned that Wilder's proposal may not be lost yet. If the General Assembly passes a different plan to raise the money, Wilder could veto it, he said.
"The governor only gets one vote," Cranwell said. "But it's the last vote."