Maine's Dirigo Health Reform is a comprehensive healthcare reform that aims to contain costs and increase access to healthcare for low-income workers and families. It offers a voluntary health coverage option to individuals and employees of small businesses through DirigoChoice, regulates premium increases, promotes adoption of one-year voluntary caps on cost increases for hospitals, practitioners' revenue, and underwriting gains for insurance carriers, and provides subsidies towards healthcare costs for low-income workers. It is not a mandate for individuals to have health insurance or for employers to pay for health insurance, and it is not a publicly-managed health insurance system, but offers coverage through private insurers. The eligibility criteria include individuals making 300% of the Federal Poverty Level or below and businesses with 50 or fewer employees insuring 75% of their eligible employees working 20 or more hours a week. California has similar regulations for small businesses and has had mental health parity since 1999, while also offering Medi-Cal coverage to parents with children under 18 up to 100%–107% of poverty.
