MINNEAPOLIS, 5:10 a.m. CST March 14, 2007 -- A bill calling for the state to establish an Health Care Access Fund oversight committee passed the Senate Health, Housing and Family Security Committee Friday.

The bill was also expected to pass the Senate Committee on State and Local Government Operations and Oversight Wednesday.

The MMA supports the formation of such a committee to ensure that funds generated by the 2 percent sick tax are used for their originally intended purpose: providing low income people more access to health care.

Benjamin Whitten, M.D., testified before the committee on behalf of the MMA.

“One thing that makes physicians even angrier than paying the provider tax is to see the funds siphoned off to the General Fund to help balance the state’s budget. In the last three years over $476 million has been transferred from the Health Care Access Fund to the General Fund. This is money that should have been used for expanding health care access that was used for other programs,” Whitten said.