Advertise
Resources
Member, Beacon International Group, Ltd.
WASHINGTON—President Barack Obama said Monday that he will back legislation to speed the process of allowing states to seek waivers that would allow them to opt out of the health care reform law as long as they meet certain criteria.
Under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, states can apply for the waivers starting in 2017.
To receive a waiver, which would be evaluated by the secretaries of the Departments of Health and Human Services and Treasury, a state would have to prove, among other things, that its own health care reform approach would ensure that as many residents have affordable coverage as the federal law would achieve and that it would not increase the federal deficit.
For example, states could apply for an exemption from some of the requirements of the law—including mandates, set to begin in 2014, that require employers to offer coverage and individuals to enroll in a qualified plan—if they offer an alternative that is at least as effective in expanding coverage.
S. 248, introduced in early February by Sens. Scott Brown, R-Mass., Mary Landrieu, D-La., and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., would allow states to apply for such waivers starting in 2014.
“It will give you more flexibility while still guaranteeing the American people reform,” President Obama told a National Governors Assn. meeting in Washington.
President Obama's endorsement of the waiver legislation marks the first time he has endorsed a major change to the health care reform law. He previously backed dropping a provision—not considered central to the law—to require employers to furnish 1099 statements when they do more than $600 in business with a corporate vendor.
The endorsement also comes as the law is under attack in Congress and in the courts. House Republicans have voted to repeal the entire law, while a federal judge in Florida in late January ruled that the law was unconstitutional.