Gov. Mark Dayton, a Democrat, sent a letter on Monday, March 26, criticizing Republican bills moving through the Legislature for taking a "piecemeal" and "ideological" approach to creating in Minnesota a health insurance exchange - a key piece of the federal health care legislation.
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On Monday night, the committee considered a bill from Sen. Tony Lourey, DFL-Kerrick, that calls for creating an exchange based on recommendations issued earlier this year by a Dayton-appointed task force. Republicans did not participate in the task force, saying it would simply serve as a rubber stamp for plans being developed with the Dayton administration.
Lourey suggested that his bill might represent a middle ground approach to creating a health exchange. Consumer advocates might want more protections, he said, while free-market advocates might want a smaller role for the government.
But that view apparently wasn't shared by Republicans on the committee. Several raised concerns that the health exchange would wind up being an expensive proposition for the state.
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Last month, Hann and Rep. Steve Gottwalt, R-St. Cloud, introduced a bill that would give individuals access to personal health premium accounts, where they could amass funds from a variety of sources to buy health care coverage. At the time, Gottwalt said those sources could include premium subsidies from the government.
A second Republican bill introduced this session would require health care "navigators" to be licensed. Navigators are a key part of the health exchange structure established by the federal health care reform law, which Congress passed in 2010.
A third bill, which was introduced by Gerlach, would place limits on the sort of policies that could be sold through a health exchange. The bill also would require that private market shareholders be part of the governance structure for a health exchange.
http://www.twincities.com/ci_20258671/dayton-criticizes-republican-health-insurance-exchange-efforts
Hat Tip: Pioneer Press
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