HHS to announce health exchange 'early innovator' grants to 7 states

The grants, which are to be used to set up the framework for the health law's state insurance exchanges, will reportedly go to Kansas, Maryland, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Wisconsin and a consortium led by Massachusetts.

Kansas Health Institute News: Kansas Getting $31.5 Million Health Exchange Grant
Kansas is getting a $31.5 million federal grant to design the backbone technology needed to operate the insurance purchasing exchange it must establish to comply with the federal health reform law. A U.S. Department of Health and Human Services official who asked not to be named because the official announcement of the award will come later today, confirmed late Tuesday that Kansas is among seven states receiving "early innovator" grants. Maryland, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Wisconsin and a consortium led by Massachusetts are the others. The reform law requires that the purchasing exchange be up and running by 2014. Kansans will use the Web-based exchange to purchase private health plans that meet federal coverage requirements, which are still being developed (McLean, 2/16).

The Baltimore Sun: Maryland Gets $6.2 Million For Health Exchanges
Maryland is one of a small number of states selected by the federal government to receive millions of dollars in grants to set up the framework for the health exchanges that will be required under the federal health care reform law passed last year. The U.S Department of Health and Human Services will announce Wednesday that Maryland will receive $6.2 million to help create a health exchange that health officials hope will be a model for other states. Six others states are sharing in a total of $241 million in grants. Under health care reform everybody will be required to buy health insurance. For those who don't get it through employers, states will set up exchanges where small businesses and individuals could buy insurance at competitive rates (Walker, 2/16).

Politico: Utah: Free Market Model For Health Exchanges
Just after the health care law passed, conservatives quickly coalesced around the Utah Health Exchange as the best-case scenario for implementing the new law (Kliff, 2/16).