Group urges health-care-exchange delay

TALLAHASSEE — A group of grass- roots health- care activists who once pushed state officials to embrace the Obamacare health-care law is now asking the Obama administration to leave Florida out of the implementation process — at least for now.

Florida lawmakers in recent weeks have softened their opposition toward the health-care act, and both the Senate and House have formed committees to examine how the state may implement a healthcare “exchange,” basically an online marketplace of insurance policies for small businesses and individuals, and whether it can expand Medicaid enrollment.

The deadline to decide on the exchanges was pushed back to Dec. 14, after many states said they were unprepared to make a decision. States have until February to decide whether to enter into a partnership to share operating responsibilities with the federal government.

Florida Chain, a statewide healthadvocacy group, sent a letter and a petition to the Obama administration Thursday arguing that there’s not enough time for the state of Florida to put together an exchange and that the federal government should run it.

“It’s just reality,” said Greg Mellowe, policy director for Florida Chain. “We cannot get from here to there in nine months.”

Exchanges must begin enrolling people by next October.

For now, it appears the state will default to the federal-governmentrun exchange. Both House and Senate leaders have said they want lawmakers to debate the issue fully during the legislative session, but that doesn’t begin until March.

State officials also have said they have too many unanswered questions to make a decision now, though they have been in contact with the Department of Health and Human Services about implementation.