Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner John Doak recently indicated he expects the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to be overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court. As a result, he intends to defer implementing a state healthcare exchange until after the judicial body makes its ruling.
The Act requires every state to establish a healthcare exchange by 2014, with a provision for a federal exchange to be established should a state fail to meet the deadline. Doak noted he may find himself obligated to institute and run the exchange if his prediction proves incorrect, despite his own disagreement with the policy.
If the court rules in favor of the law, Doak indicated, Oklahoma should be certain to implement its own exchange rather than waiting for a federal mandate. He also supported Governor Mary Fallin's decision, earlier this year, to turn down a federal grant to create Oklahoma's exchange.
According to Doak, the state's private sector is well positioned to create a viable exchange at lower cost than the federal grant, and could do so within the time allotted. State legislators have yet to develop a response to the policy, but a joint committee has met.
Many seem reluctant to undertake a project as large as the state healthcare exchanges, particularly since healthcare in general is an issue on which lawmakers have varying opinions. The fate of the Affordable Care Act will significantly affect employee benefits and healthcare either way.
