In an effort provide healthcare for more than one million uninsured adults, Gov. Jennifer Granholm announced her proposal to create a low-cost state-wide healthcare program last month, adding another possible solution to the increasingly heated healthcare debate.

The plan would redirect 1.1 billion dollars from existing federal and state funds and would not require additional costs, Granholm said.

The program, similar to a healthcare plan in Massachusetts, targets more than half a million Michigan adults who qualify as small business employees or earn less than double the federal poverty line.

Granholm first mentioned the plan, called the Michigan First Healthcare Plan, in her State of the State address earlier this year.

Last month was the first time Granholm outlined its details, giving healthcare experts a chance to weigh in.

School of Public Health Prof. Catherine McLaughlin said it appears the Michigan First Healthcare program would pool Michigan's uninsured and coordinate standard guidelines with private insurance companies.

By operating collectively, the program will offer healthcare plans at a lower cost than the premium each individual would be charged on the private market.

In order for the program to keep costs low for customers, it must draw a large enrollment of both healthy and unhealthy people, said McLaughlin, who is the director of the University's Economic Research Initiative on the Uninsured, which examines healthcare issues from an economic perspective, and is also a member of the Citizens' Health Care Working group, an advisory organization to Congress.

If the program only attracts customers with large medical bills, insurance companies will have little incentive to participate, she said.

On the private market, insurance companies are automatically suspicious of seemingly healthy people who seek insurance, reasoning there is some health problem the customer isn't revealing, McLauglin said. Because of this, companies can charge very high premiums on the private market, making coverage unaffordable for many.

These factors often make college students among Michigan's uninsured population.

Robert Winfield, director of University Health Service, said students are generally aware of their healthcare coverage status, but unexpected emergency medical bills often catch them off guard.

"People on the edge financially are making conscious decisions about their risks," Winfield said.

Winfield also said the University has considered requiring all students to purchase health insurance, but has not yet moved forward with those plans.

The University worries the extra cost might discourage students from attending, he said.

Currently, the University only requires international and medical students to have health insurance.

In its preliminary stages, Granholm's plan, while applauded by some, was met with criticism from political opponents.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Dick DeVos has criticized Granholm's approach, saying that rather than creating new healthcare programs, existing plans should be streamlined.

Granholm defended the program, saying that research shows that providing basic healthcare reduces costs over time by eliminating costly emergency visits that could have been prevented if the patient had received care earlier.

DeVos has also pushed for extensive reforms of Michigan's Medicaid program.

McLaughlin said DeVos is justified to want more control over the healthcare system, but that as governor, Granholm has little power to overhaul the program because of its status as a joint state-federal program.

"Her hands are tied pretty tight by the federal government," McLaughlin said.

Talk of universal healthcare has been building in Lansing for months.

In April, Lansing activist Melissa Sue Robinson launched a petition drive to have a provision guaranteeing universal healthcare in Michigan added to the state's constitution.

The initiative will be added to the November ballot if Robinson collects the nearly 320,000 signatures necessary.

Brian Mok and Candy Chu contributed to this report.