Pressing his case after a 23-12 Senate vote for his state-based health insurance exchange, Gov. Butch Otter says in an op-ed that such exchanges were considered good policy in the private sector long before the passage of President Obama’s Affordable Care Act.
With the House Health and Welfare Committee expected to introduce a new omnibus bill incorporating the Senate bill next week, Otter says an Idaho-run exchange is best for Idaho, even if it means choking down opposition to the concept of Obamacare.
“More than a decade before Obamacare started giving health insurance exchanges a bad name, they were at work in the private sector, used mostly by large companies seeking to provide affordable group health coverage for their employees,” Otter writes in the op-ed released Friday morning. “Some states, including Idaho, also have had private exchanges selling small group and individual policies for years.
“Then Obamacare started confusing the issue. Its passage and court approval, and the subsequent re-election of its namesake, left those of us seeking a market-based approach to addressing the issue frustrated and disappointed.
“But much as we may wish otherwise, resisting Obamacare by simply refusing to act is no remedy at all. It sounds great in principle – even heroic. Yet history tells us it does not effectively influence public policy, change the law of the land or even protect our interests.”
Otter’s full submission follows:
STATE-BASED INSURANCE EXCHANGE PRESERVES OUR OPTIONS, PROTECTS OUR INTERESTS
By Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter
At my request and after careful, deliberate consideration, the Idaho Senate recently approved legislation affirming my choice of a state-based health insurance exchange.
That bill now goes to the Idaho House of Representatives, where debate figures to be just as passionate. That’s understandable, since most members of the Idaho Legislature share my intense opposition to the so-called Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare.
But the issue before us has nothing to do with how we feel about Obamacare, how we feel about overreaching federal authority and the government’s failure in this gargantuan and unworkable piece of law to address the essential goals of more affordable and accessible health care.
It has quite simply to do with our right and responsibility to keep as many options as possible open to the people of Idaho. As much as we might object to the necessity, creating a state-based exchange is the only way to preserve options, oversight and accountability for our citizens.
If we fail to seize this opportunity, if we default to total federal control of this process, the result will be an unresponsive, one-size-fits-all federal exchange wreaking havoc on some of America’s most reasonable costs of coverage.
At its core, this is a matter of state and individual rights. A state-based exchange enables us as citizens to be, if not the architect of our own destiny, then at least the general contractor.
Everyone reading this knows how I feel about Obamacare. As I have from the day it was enacted, I will continue encouraging and supporting efforts by our Idaho congressional delegation and many others to repeal and replace the law. But the fact remains that for now and for the foreseeable future it is the law. And as responsible elected officials we’re sworn to uphold the rule of law – not just those laws that we support.
So I urge the people of Idaho and members of the Legislature to stay engaged in the important work of changing a misguided federal law, but in the meantime we need to work at preserving for Idaho the option of having a voice in how one element of that law is implemented.
A state-run exchange that works for Idaho is neither a Trojan horse nor a white flag of surrender to Obamacare. Rather, it’s an opportunity to positively influence local outcomes under difficult circumstances, but we have to seize it.
Doing nothing leaves us with a federal exchange, administered from Washington, D.C., by unknown bureaucrats making decisions about Idaho citizens under the cover of an all-seeing and all-knowing government. That’s simply not acceptable to me or, I believe, to most of you.
More than a decade before Obamacare started giving health insurance exchanges a bad name, they were at work in the private sector, used mostly by large companies seeking to provide affordable group health coverage for their employees. Some states, including Idaho, also have had private exchanges selling small group and individual policies for years.
Then Obamacare started confusing the issue. Its passage and court approval, and the subsequent re-election of its namesake, left those of us seeking a market-based approach to addressing the issue frustrated and disappointed.
But much as we may wish otherwise, resisting Obamacare by simply refusing to act is no remedy at all. It sounds great in principle – even heroic. Yet history tells us it does not effectively influence public policy, change the law of the land or even protect our interests.
That requires relentless, tireless and consistent work to change hearts, minds and votes. Creating a state-based exchange maximizes our flexibility and degree of self-determination while that important process continues.
Make no mistake: Defaulting to a federal exchange is a worst-case scenario for Idaho. While advocates of doing nothing contend there is no substantive difference between a federal exchange and a state-based exchange, their arguments put philosophy and political wishful thinking ahead of facts like these:
- Nobody is required to buy health insurance through an Idaho-based exchange.
- Defaulting to a federal exchange would add extra layers of bureaucracy for Idaho insurance buyers.
- A state-based exchange would conduct all its business publicly and transparently – which would not be the case with a federal exchange.
Designing our own unique plan, having the exchange run by locally chosen Idaho citizens who will meet openly right here at home, gives us the best chance of weathering the Obamacare storm while meeting the needs of Idaho citizens.
As one member of the Idaho Senate so eloquently put it: Given a choice, I choose Idaho.
It’s obvious that “advocates of doing nothing” includes the Boise Tea Party with their false-fact radio ads, Wayne Hoffman’s fake charity, the Idaho Freedom Foundation, and a couple irrelevant local morning radio hosts.
These entities have led many of their followers to believe that if enough states refuse a state exchange, the feds efforts to establish Federal Exchanges will collapse. Not so. the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), which is setting up the exchanges, said as recently Feb 12th that it was on track to have them running by Oct 1st, the first day of open enrollment.
It’s one thing to honorably oppose a program; it’s another to deliberately mislead the public.
We’ll know when we have the best healthcare system when insurance companies are out of the picture. That will be Medicare for all.
Right on brother!!!
The origin of mandated individual health care came from the conservative movement and its primary think tank the Heritage Foundation in 1988.
This is a group funded by conservative billionaires, corporations, financial institutions and insrance companies, they all supported the idea and paid money to have the heritage foundation promote it.
We’ll know that we have our tax policy right when billionaires are extinct.
It turns out the the big bank and financial corporations were not only too big to fail but also too big to jail.
I am neither a Republican or Democrat but blaming the Tea Party for fighting Obamacare is like blaming smog on lawnmowers. Butch Otter sold out the State for $21 million. Ask him what about that.
The problem is we should fight Obamacare? Why? It is a bad policy, represents idealogy and not practicality. That means we will all pay for an inefficient health plan and already are. It is turning out now, ironically, that many people will not have health coverage because of Obamacare rules. Healthcare for all and the plan does not cover all?
In addition Obamacare represents an inefficient Federal govt wasting more money. Actually the thugs in Washington threaten everyone to get their way if you follow the news. So when are going to stand up and fight back this irresponsible spending? When we are bust? We are getting there. Wake up peoople.
In my opinion, Butch Otter brought in the health exchanges for other reasons that are not in the best interest of Idahoans. I am sickened by politicians and the continous disregard for ethically and honestly doing their jobs. We must not quit fighting back.
The worst thing about our government is that millionaires and billionaires are in control of it.
Feather, you are tickling me.
Yes, health exchanges were a great idea before Obama gave them a bad name? And I suppose, Butch, that’s why you worked so hard over the last 10 years to bring a health exchange to Idaho. Not a single effort has been made in Idaho to work on citizen’s health care problems until Obamacare and the only effort being made now is to fight it. I guess idaho’s mantra is “it’s a sad day when 40 million more Americans get health coverage”.
“And as responsible elected officials we’re sworn to uphold the rule of law – not just those laws that we support.” So, if a law was passed that said, “You must abort your pregnancy to save the planet” you would be okay with that? because it is a law? No matter how you feel about obamacare, your reasoning doesn’t work. You took an oath to uphold the State of Idaho Constitution and the US Constitution. Any law that is passed that is not in agreement, needs to be nullified. Tyranny will take this land because people are willingly upholding unlawful laws.