HHS Extends Exchange Deadline For States.
New York Times (11/10, Pear, Subscription Publication) reported that the Obama Administration said on Friday it would extend deadlines for states to file their plans for health insurance exchanges. States still must tell the government whether they plan to create their own exchanges by Nov. 16, but they will have until Dec. 14 to provide details of how they will do it. HHS Secretary Sebelius also told governors they can wait until Feb. 15 to file their applications for partnership exchanges with the Federal government. The times notes that “the White House has repeatedly said that states were making excellent progress toward creation of the exchanges, even as Republican governors and state legislators expressed ambivalence or outright opposition” and sometimes complained that “they were having difficulty because Mr. Obama had yet to issue crucial regulations and guidance.”
The Miami Herald (11/11, Dorschner) reported that with President Obama’s reelection, “Florida’s Republican leaders are reconsidering their fervent opposition to federal healthcare reform, triggering a discussion that could have huge repercussions forSouth Florida.” The article noted that Governor Rick Scott and other Florida Republicans are shifting from strict opposition to the ACA to a search “for compromises on how it is carried out in the state.”
The Palm Beach (FL) Post (11/11 Singer) reports that Scott on Friday “appeared to be softening his longstanding refusal to acknowledge” ACA. Scott said in a statement, “Just saying ‘no’ is not an answer. We need to focus on how Obamacare affects each of our families,” before adding he is still “concerned about the impact for cost, access and quality of care.” Though the article enumerates several benefits for the state in setting up its own exchange, it notes that just Wednesday, Scott reiterated his opposition to the provision, saying, “No one has been able to show me that health care exchange is going o do anything rather than raise taxes, raise the cost of our companies to do business.”