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Analysis: 20 states will run their health-law exchanges
Twenty states will operate their own insurance exchanges in 2014 under President Obama's healthcare law, according to a new analysis.
Avalere Health released its estimate after Obama won a second term on Tuesday, a victory that all but ensures the Affordable Care Act's future.
Governors have a choice as to whether to implement the law's exchanges or leave the task to the federal government. A third option is a "partnership" model in which the state and federal government jointly manage the marketplace.
In their choices, Republican governors face a balancing act — not going too far to embrace the law, which remains divisive with the public and anathema to conservatives, but also not skipping a chance to wrest authority from the federal government.
In Missouri, voters passed a ballot measure Tuesday that prohibits Gov. Jay Nixon (D) from creating an insurance exchange unless the move is authorized by the state legislature or by a ballot initiative. The measure's passage all but ensures that the federal government will run Missouri's exchange.
Avalere added Wednesday that six states have indicated they will not pursue the law's offer to expand Medicaid.
