Fifteen states opt to run own health exchanges: official

By David Morgan
WASHINGTON | Thu Dec 13, 2012 10:22am EST

(Reuters) - Only 15 U.S. states plan to operate health insurance exchanges under President Barack Obama's reform law, leaving Washington with the daunting prospect of creating and operating the new online marketplaces in at least two-thirds of the country.

On the eve of a federal deadline for states to say whether they will run their own exchanges, 11 other states have informed the administration that it should plan to be heavily involved in setting up private health insurance markets within their borders, said Gary Cohen, director of the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight, on Thursday.

Experts say the number of states planning to operate their own exchanges could reach 18 and the District of Columbia by the time the deadline expires on Friday. But the administration would still be left to set up exchanges in at least 30 states, a challenge that is raising questions about how successfully U.S. officials can implement a key provision of the healthcare reform law known to advocates and opponents alike as "Obamacare".

But the Obama administration insists that exchanges will be operating in all 50 states and the District of Columbia as required by the law.

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