(OFFICIAL)-California health reform passes first vote

(Please read in second paragraph 46 to 31 instead of 45 to 31 to comply with an official correction from the Assembly)

SACRAMENTO, Calif., Dec 17 (Reuters) - California's Assembly on Monday approved Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's plan for universal health insurance as overhauling health care gains national prominence ahead of the 2008 presidential election.

The compromise legislation, which passed by a vote of 46 to 31, was hammered out by the Republican governor and Fabian Nunez, speaker of California's Democrat-led Assembly.

It must now win approval from the state Senate and voters.

While a handful of other states have revamped their systems, California's plan for its 36 million people is seen as a potential model for a national reform.

The new plan would require everyone in the state to carry health insurance and expand coverage for California's 6.5 million people who are uninsured.

It also would impose taxes on hospitals, cigarettes and employers who do not provide health insurance for workers. (Reporting by Lisa Baertlein and Jenny O'Mara, Editing by Mary Milliken and Sandra Maler)