AUGUSTA, Maine (AP)   Some Maine lawmakers are preparing to start tackling health care reform proposals that could go to the full Legislature when it returns in January.

The Legislature’s Heath Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services Committee will meet on Sept. 24 in Augusta to work on several health care reform bills that carried over to the next legislative session.

Some bills include ambitious steps toward universal health coverage in Maine. Those include establishing a single payer system, allowing individuals to buy into the state employee health plan, or creating a Medicaid buy-in option.

Lawmakers could combine the bills into a single broader health care reform bill and introduce it at the beginning of the next session.