The post-election rollout of the Obama administration’s plans to implement insurance exchanges in time for January 2014 enrollment has met substantial state government opposition, raised more questions than answers, and flashed warning signs of a train wreck ahead.
A 33 states – a clear majority – still are not fully on board with running their own exchanges to comply with the dictates of the Affordable Care Act. Most of those states – as many as 23 – would rather leave the daunting implementation process entirely in the hands of federal officials.
The strong resistance of many state governors – who are being asked to build the key regulatory architecture for Obamacare – is fully justified.