Dear neighbors,
I want to thank those who came to my town hall meeting at Forest Hills in Eden Prairie last week for our Education town hall meeting. We had a great discussion about the challenges and opportunities facing schools and students in our community.
I was honored to recently attend Hennepin County Technical College's ribbon cutting ceremony for its newly renovated learning resource and student services spaces at its Eden Prairie location.
Despite the federal government shutdown, Minnesota is moving ahead and our schools were repaid an additional $636 million at the end of the 2013 fiscal year. Minnesota has now repaid nearly $2.6 billion of the $2.8 billion previously borrowed from schools under the budget passed after the 2011 state government shutdown. I was the chief author of the bill to pay back the schools this session and am pleased that we are in a position to pay them back fully by early next year.
In addition, the MNsure health insurance website is now online and enrollment has begun. Families and individuals that are currently covered under a group or state health insurance plan do not need to use MNsure. However, if you are uninsured, underinsured or covered under an expensive private plan, MNsure is a place to purchase an affordable, high quality policy.
MNsure’s rates were recently released and Minnesota’s are the lowest in the nation compared to states offering similar products. Other changes to health insurance will allow children to stay on their parent’s policy until age 26, no longer allow insurers to deny clients based on preexisting conditions and cap out-of-pocket spending at $6,350 for individuals and $12,700 for families. The health plans offered include existing networks of providers, meaning most enrollees will be able to keep their doctor or clinic.
Enrollment in MNsure began October 1, and coverage begins January 1, 2014. If you’re planning to use MNsure, you can enroll anytime by December 15 to be insured on January 1. For more information, visit MNsure’s website at
http://www.mnsure.org.
The launch of MNsure and the good news about our school payback is proof that progress can be attained when legislators put their own agendas aside and compromise to move things forward. I am hopeful that our federal legislators find a timely way to end the federal government shutdown.
Please mark your calendars for my next town hall meeting, Saturday October 26th at 10:30 AM at the Eden Prairie Senior Center (8950 Eden Prairie Rd, Eden Prairie, MN 55347). Commissioner Mike Rothman and the Better Business Bureau's Gary Johnson will be sharing tips on how to avoid being victimized by the many scams today, including the ones now being promulgated about MNSure and roof repair (due to storm damage in our area).
Lastly, I want to share information about the Minnesota House of Representatives High School Page Program. The program offers a unique opportunity for students to come to the Capitol for a week and examine what they learn in the classroom under real life circumstances. Students participate in a wide variety of activities, each designed to further their understanding of our state government and the legislative process. The program is open to all high school students during their Junior year. For more information or to apply, visit:
http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/edprog/over2p.htm.
As always, thank you for the honor of being your voice at the Capitol.
Best,
Yvonne