SACRAMENTO — Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger unveiled a sweeping $12 billion health care plan today that would require all Californians to have health insurance. In remarks that he delivered by video conference from Los Angeles, Schwarzenegger insisted covering all Californians was the key to lowering the exploding costs of health care. ‘We pay higher deductibles, higher cost for treatment, higher premiums and higher co-pays,” he said. ‘Prices for health care and insurance are rising twice as fast as inflation, twice as fast as wages. That is a terrible drain on everyone and it is a drain on our economy. My solution is that everyone in California must have insurance. If you can’t afford it, the state will help you buy it, but you must be insured.” Among the highlights: The governor would require employers to provide insurance or pay into a state fund that would help people buy their own insurance; he would require insurers to cover everyone, regardless of medical condition; he would require 85 percent of insurance premiums be spent on patient care; he would substantially increase the MediCal reimbursement for doctors. He acknowledged how controversial his proposal to cover illegal immigrants is, but said […]