Perry's Texas is lagging on health exchanges

[white cloud]

In Rick Perry's Texas, nearly 1 in 3 working-age residents has no health insurance, so there's a price to pay for his pride and politics.

Count the millions of federal dollars being left on the table, because the governor refuses to begin work on a healthcare exchange. As important, count the opportunity costs -- the missed chances to create a better health insurance market for millions of Texans who need individual and small-company plans.

A frequent criticism of the 2010 healthcare law is that it forces a cookie-cutter solution on all. Not so with health exchanges, the online shopping sites envisioned as a Travelocity for health insurance.

Each state can tailor its exchange to the culture and population, and diverse approaches are already appearing. But those states that don't establish their own systems -- that's Texas at the moment -- will have to use a federal exchange.

Even conservative stalwarts like Mississippi and Utah have already taken steps to avoid the federal option.

While Perry complains about being fed-up with Washington, others are seizing the moment and the money. Thirteen states have established exchanges, tackling issues such as the makeup of governing boards, mandated benefits and which insurers to allow into the mix.

Twenty-eight states and the District of Columbia have received first-level grants to establish their programs. Federal payouts include $1.6 million to Tennessee, $21 million to Missouri and $39 million to California.

Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/2012/02/18/3744532/perrys-texas-is-lagging-on-health.html#storylink=cpy

[seeviewonder]

1. Is this supposed to be surprising? n/t

[annabanana]

2. New York hasn't made any more progress than Texas in this.

In fact, Dean Skelos (R - Obstructionist) has said that "There's no hurry" to establish the exchanges...