House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said President Obama’s support for allowing states to opt out of the healthcare law three years early “makes the case” that Republicans have made against the entire law.

Obama announced Monday that he would favor a bipartisan Senate proposal that would allow states to seek an exemption waiver beginning in 2014 instead of 2017, as the 2010 law mandates. States would have to demonstrate that their own programs satisfy the federal law's coverage and affordability requirements.

“It is just making our point,” Cantor told reporters Monday, “that not only have we seen a variety of exceptions and waivers issued to the private sector under the act but now we’re seeing how that act is troubling states in a real way.”

“I think it just makes the case that we’re trying to make here,” the majority leader added. “The ObamaCare bill is something that is an impediment to job growth. It is something that seems to be an impediment to states now getting their fiscal house in order.”

Cantor reiterated that the GOP commitment is to repeal the law entirely. The House passed a repeal bill in January, but the Senate voted it down. The structure of the Democratic overhaul is “unworkable,” Cantor said.

Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour (R), a possible 2012 presidential candidate, said anemic enrollment in new federal high-risk insurance pools is proof that states need more flexibility to run their Medicaid programs.

Enrollment in new federal insurance pools for individuals with preexisting conditions have fallen far short of original projections. Just more than 12,000 have enrolled as of February, far less than the 375,000 the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services actuary projected for the end of 2010.

The pools were included in the healthcare reform law to provide temporary coverage until 2014, when insurance companies can no longer discriminate against individuals with preexisting conditions.

Barbour, making the case for states to have more flexibility to shape Medicaid programs for the poor, said the lackluster showing in federal high-risk pools is indicative that the states are in a better position to determine their healthcare destinies.

Did the Florida judge who struck down the reform law in January mean to halt its implementation, or didn’t he? U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson is expected to make his intent explicit next week following an Obama administration request to clarify his Jan. 31 ruling.

The 26 states and business group who successfully challenged the law said this week that Vinson clearly meant to halt the law, and they accused the administration of making a thinly-veiled attempt of trying to get a stay of the decision. The administration has the opportunity to respond to the states by Monday, and Vinson said he will weigh in “promptly.”

When lawmakers return from Presidents Day recess, their top priority will be trying to keep the government running past March 4. House Republicans passed a seven-month continuing resolution that would choke off funding to implement healthcare reform and Planned Parenthood, but Senate Democrats likely won’t be willing to entertain those cuts. The defunding measures can play a huge role in whether a government shutdown can be avoided.

The Constitution grants the federal government wide latitude to impose taxes — but not penalties — for general welfare.

The governors said block grants would provide states with the flexibility to tinker with the safety net for the poor.

A two-week, stopgap continuing resolution (CR) proposed by House Republicans includes more than $450 million in cuts to the Department of Health and Human Services, but it avoids hot-button issues such as funding for healthcare reform and Title X family planning.

The CR unveiled Friday afternoon includes $4 billion in reductions and is meant to avoid a government shutdown that would occur on March 4 without both chambers and President Obama agreeing to a spending bill.

A seven-month resolution passed by the House last week included $61 billion in cuts and provisions that would halt funding for healthcare reform, Title X family planning and Planned Parenthood. Senate Democrats are not likely to include those cuts in their spending bill, which could trigger a fight with Republicans in the lower chamber.

Fresh off their defense against efforts to repeal the healthcare reform law, progressive groups are now gearing up for a showdown with state governors looking to slash Medicaid and children's health programs.

The pro-reform Families USA and 129 groups have signed on to a new letter calling on House members to maintain the reform law’s requirement for states to maintain Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program eligibility standards. The letter will be released Tuesday morning before governors ask the House Energy and Commerce Committee for a reprieve from healthcare reform’s Medicaid requirements as they grapple with massive budget deficits.

According to Families USA, the groups signing the letter include representatives of people with health problems and disabilities, seniors, children, women, care providers, small-business owners, minorities, religious groups and consumers.

Under healthcare reform, states that tighten their Medicaid eligibility requirements before 2014 would stand to lose their federal match for the program. The law also requires states to maintain eligibility standards for children in the Medicaid and CHIP programs through Sept. 30, 2019.

As unhappy governors protest they can't afford the law's Medicaid requirements, HHS stresses law's flexibility.

Battle over control of health law's exchanges roils North Carolina: A bruising battle over who gets to control a key element of Democrats' healthcare reform law has broken out in North Carolina, providing an early glimpse into an issue that's likely to consume many state legislatures over the next two years.

The law gives states until the end of next year to create health insurance exchanges where people can buy high-quality insurance plans with federal subsidies starting Jan. 1, 2014. In states that aren't ready by then, the federal government will run the exchanges.

Consumer advocates in the Tar Heel State are accusing the state's biggest insurer, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBSNC), of attempting to control the board that would regulate the exchange. They say legislation supported by the insurer would give Blue Cross a permanent seat at the table and weaken the exchange's consumer protections. Read The Hill's story.

New money for rate review: The Department of Health and Human Services announced $200 million in new grants for states to enhance their rate review procedures. $150 million will go toward two- and three-year grants to boost reviews. $22 million will go to states with greater populations. And $27 million in bonuses will be paid for states that create programs that have the power to block unreasonable rates, Healthwatch's Jason Millman reports. 

And still more money: HHS also announced that $100 million is available for states to incentivize healthy behaviors among Medicaid recipients. Read The Hill's write-up.

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