State Sen. John Marty is traveling around the state telling people about his proposed Minnesota Health Plan, a statewide single-payer that would cover all residents.

Under the plan, all licensed health care providers would be in one network that also included chiropractic, mental health and dental services. No one would be rejected for pre-existing conditions and there'd be no deductibles or co-pays.

Marty was in Owatonna this week to talk with farmers and small-business owners — who often struggle with health care costs.

He used his oft-repeated argument that health care should be like local police and fire protection, available to all and paid for by taxes and grants.

Among those at the meeting, said the Owatonna People's Press, were Michael and Julie Mussman, who own an Owatonna dairy farm but need a job off the farm to get health care benefits for the family.

“I work off the farm just for benefits,” Julie Mussman told the paper. “I could lose the income, but I couldn’t lose the benefits. It’s become a major issue. It’s painful for me to talk to my fellow dairy farmers — they’re struggling to find that coverage that’s affordable.”

Also attending were Trevor and Vicki Jensen — owners of a Farmers Union Insurance company — who said many farm family members work off the farm just to get health benefits.

Brad Meier, president and CEO of the Owatonna Area Chamber of Commerce and Tourism, told the paper that residents may be leery of a legislative proposed system.

“Businesses get concerned because when government works to make something better, sometimes it gets worse,” Meier said. “I think that’s the fear.”

Republican State Sen. Mike Parry, showed up, too, and told the paper:

“Everybody knows that we have to do something. It is an interesting plan, as I sat there and digested what he was putting forth, my biggest question and my biggest thought at this point in time is how do we fund a program like that. The key issue will be the cost and how we would actually pay for it.”

Others, too, worry about the cost of Marty's far-reaching plan, he told MinnPost last year that it would cost less than we're now paying:

"We estimate the cost will be 20 percent cheaper than what we're spending now in terms of total health-care dollars spent in Minnesota. That's extremely expensive; about the only thing that is more expensive is what we're doing now. Unlike the proposals in Congress, which are looking for a trillion dollars or more over the next decade, we want to do more than they do: cover everyone and all medical needs and do it at less cost. That's the good news."