Many of you know that I’ve fought for years to make Washington the healthiest state in the nation. This year, I’m continuing that effort with my House Bill 1085, establishing the Washington Health Security Trust, a cost-effective, efficient, equitable way to extend affordable and accessible health care to all Washingtonians. I was surprised and honored recently when a progressive policy group based at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the American Legislative & Issue Campaign Exchange (ALICE), discovered HB 1085 and called it “a notable instance of exemplary policy making.”
They’ve added it to their public database, to make it available as a model for elected officials and policy advocates nationwide. Here in Olympia, the bill received a public hearing in the House Healthcare & Wellness Committee in early February. Its future is still unknown, but I’m pleased that the policy analysts at ALICE recognized its value, and I’ll continue working to, as I said, make Washington the healthiest state in the U.S. Our families deserve no less.