State Forgoes Federal Affordable Health Care Act Fix

Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy has not been shy about his frustration with the federal roll out of the Affordable Care Act and he has decided to forgo President Barack Obama’s fix for the health care law.

“Residents of my state are frustrated about this situation and so am I,” Malloy said in a statement. “The truth is that the solution offered last week won’t work for Connecticut. To those who think we should have a special session because there’s some magical way for us to fix the issue, I say you’re wrong. http://firstread.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/11/14/21456667-obama-repairing-damaged-credibility-is-on-me?lite

He said the president’s option would not affect 36 percent of individual policies that were carried over from before March 23, 2010. 

“Second, of the remaining group that could be potentially impacted, insurers have told the state that they do not plan to continue those policies already slated to be replaced, even if given the option to do so.  Finally, even if they changed their minds and decided to renew them, we know that rates on those plans would increase significantly this year, and again next year,” Malloy said.

The state’s has its own health insurance exchange.

“Thankfully, here in Connecticut, our Lt. Governor, Nancy Wyman, has spearheaded the effort to build an insurance exchange that is working for Connecticut citizens.  In the weeks ahead, staff from Access Health CT and the Connecticut Department of Insurance are going to continue working with private carriers to help anyone and everyone that is losing their plan.  This will include a new coordinated effort that will embed Access Health staff directly into private carriers to better coordinate these efforts.  In addition, I’ve asked Access Health to extend the deadline for new signups to our exchange for one week to December 22, giving consumers a little more time to explore their options."

U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal said he supports Malloy's decision.

"Like many significant pieces of legislation, the Affordable Care Act will require tweaks and changes as it is implemented. I am pleased the President is exploring such changes to improve the law, even as they all do not necessarily fit every state,” Blumenthal said.

How Republican Leader Larry Cafero released a statement this afternoon saying that while Connecticut has not experienced the "disastrous" website failures found elsewhere, the Affordable Care Act is not working here either. 

“The numbers indicate that only 42 percent of those people with individual policies will be allowed to continue on them, leaving an estimated 70,000 without coverage Jan. 1," Cafero said. “By then, it is likely that fewer people will have coverage than when this process rolled out Oct. 1. The figures released today paint a far worse picture than the one originally described by state officials who initially stated that only 9,000 policies were affected.”  

Lt. Gov. Nancy Wyman said no solution is perfect for every policyholder, but she believes that many people who received cancellation notices will be able to secure coverage at a reasonable price through the state exchange.
 

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