editorials

Exchanges are like spitting into the wind because they do nothing to address the mountain of paperwork doctors have to wade through. In fact they add to the problem by adding in more insurance plans. Currently there are 2.2 people per doctor just to handle the reimbursement codes!

Universal single payer health care is the only way to go, and even that is just a start towards the needed reform.

I feel like our worthless conservative representatives let us down here all over again. Some of the most conservative states in the nation have actually led the way in creating good insurance exchanges, but our legislators were more busy playing the political game of not giving credit to Obama or the PPACA. So now there's a huge scramble to throw millions of dollars to try and create a very complicated application/system that will probably fail by not being ready in time.

Not been as impressed with Commissioner Rothman as the Strib seems to be. Under Rothman the meaning of being "transparent" and openn seems to get lost. Health Exchanges are a vital part of the Affordable Health Care Act. The Commerce Department needs to be more open to the suggestions of the State Chamber. Even though the Chamber generally are a tool of the Republican Party never the less they are raising legitimate issues. Is Commissioner Rothman listening ?

---"Minnesotans have not been told who will run the exchange, the scope of what the exchange will regulate, what functions the exchange will perform, how much the exchange will cost,.." And thus, we can't put political pressure to get it changed in our favor, or slow the process so it fails. "We need information shared so we can sink it" - Stay in the dark - the law sets the rules and we have people on it.

I strongly suggest all, specially the opinion writer and the first couple comment contributors, read CATOs (CATO.org) position on exchanges, and what the states should be doing. Just open your mind, critically read their view, use logic and think through for yourself.

The law has 2700 pages, how can anything be unclear?

mcjoe1 I feel like our worthless conservative representatives let us down here all over again. Some of the most conservative states in the nation have actually led the way in creating good insurance exchanges, but our legislators were more busy playing the political game of not giving credit to Obama or the PPACA. So now there's a huge scramble to throw millions of dollars to try and create a very complicated application/system that will probably fail by not being ready in time. ------------------------- mcjoe - I hate to be the run that breaks this to you, but it was not up to the legislature to create the exchange. It is up to the administration. So if you want to put blame on someone (instead of solutions) point your finger at Governor Dayton and his administration. He was too busy vetoing everything coming across his desk mostly to pay back his union financiers. He totally forgot about Minnesotans.

muggsh2o: From a different news article "State Representative Mary D. Franson, a conservative freshman Republican, said: “We have an ultraliberal governor who thinks he can do things by executive order like President Obama.” Ms. Franson said that if Mr. Dayton tried to establish an exchange without legislative approval, “he will have a fight on his hands because I’m like a mama bear; I’ll protect our citizens from the overreach of government." So how is the Dayton administration at fault?

Oh this whole exchange process should flow smoothly, if it goes like every other state run agency tubby and totally mismanaged.

I wonder if they held back on working this out to allow the republicans to bring the law up at the Supreme Court? The Republicans have done every single thing they can to disrupt the law and will continue on that path, so expect an implementation that is less than what it could be. The weirdest thing is that as far as I know an exchange type system is part of the Republican shadow plan that they don't like to talk about even as they vow repeal of the reform.