Don't Fret Over Federal Health Exchanges
Posted at 12:15 p.m. on Nov. 12, 2012
Sarah Kliff explains why it might actually be a good thing that a number of governors are leaving it to the federal government to set up the health care exchanges required by President Obama’s health care reform law.
“Just for a minute, put yourself in the shoes of a Republican governor who has done very little to prepare for the health-care law… You could slap together a health insurance exchange at warp speed, hiring all the consultants you can find in the next few weeks… Option two is leave the task to the federal government. They already promised that they’ll make sure every state has an insurance exchange standing by Jan. 1, 2014. They have a huge interest in making sure these exchanges work really, really well.”
“You do have about 15 states that have committed to running their own exchange. Part of the drive there is support of the health-care law, but it’s also about having control over the new marketplace… There are definitely benefits to more control over an insurance exchange. But for a state coming to the process late in the game, they could easily be outweighed by the many possible downsides.”
