Lane 3

Georgia Health Exchange Legislation Withdrawn

Last week Georgia House Republicans pulled HB 476 which would have established the governing authority for Georgia health exchanges. The legislation was withdrawn due to a lack of support from “tea party” Republicans. The opposition’s major argument was that under Judge Roger Vinson’s ruling in Florida the Patient Protection and Accountable Care Act (PPCACA) was found unconstitutional and, therefore, why should Georgia work towards implementing its portion of that law.

In an AJC article Governor Deal spokesman Brian Robinson puts forth the his argument in favor of establishing a state-run health insurance exchange:

“If Georgia must have an insurance exchange under federal law, the governor wants to ensure that our exchange is established by and run by Georgians. The alternative is having an exchange established by and run by Washington bureaucrats. The governor considers the latter unacceptable.”

Expect HB 476 to resurface in one form or fashion – there is momentum on the side of states to address health care reform where efforts by the Federal government have failed.