Governors Declining Health Benefit Exchanges

I was interviewed in a story for Health Care News about states whose governors are declining to implement Obamacare Health Benefits Exchanges.  Read it online here.

Jindal: No Obamacare Exchange for Louisiana

Louisiana governor Jindal has told POLITICO Pulse that he will not establish an Obamacare Health Benefits Exchange in his state. According to POLITICO, this is the governor's first definitive statement on the question.

As I discussed a few days ago, Georgia governor Deal also took some time to make a final decision on a Health Benefits Exchange. But he eventually made the right decision: No exchange.

A shrinking number of Obamacare's opponents continue to insist that states can establish narrow exchanges, like Utah's apparently ineffective one, that will serve as a "firewall" against Obamacare. Governors like Deal and Jindal know that any exchange can only serve as fertilizer that will allow Obamacare's roots to grow deeper into the soil - and making repeal more difficult.

(Plus, I suppose that Deal and Jindal would like to avoid President Obama campaigning in Georgia, Louisiana, and nationwide in 2012 saying "Health reform is very flexible and responsive. Look: I made a deal with these Republican governors!".)

A California Cash Cow or New York Pork With Your Cornhusker Kickback?

The latest Capital Ideas, in which I address the plaintiff wails of Governor Schwarzenegger and Governor Paterson, who demand even more federal bailouts of their Medicaid programs.