The health law and the states

Stateline reports that some GOP governors are moving very slowly on health insurance exchanges. Also in the news, a bill in the Georgia House would restore child-only plans.

Stateline: GOP Governors Stall Health Insurance Exchange Plans
It's hard to find a governor who doesn't agree that creating an organized marketplace to help consumers and small businesses shop for health insurance is a good idea. But when it comes to implementing the state-run exchanges called for in the controversial 2010 federal health law, many GOP governors are balking. ... Waiting with Nebraska are Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri, Michigan, South Dakota, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin, according to news reports compiled by the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities (Vestal, 3/1). 

California Healthline: Study Looks at Language Barriers To Exchange Coverage
Communities of color are expected to make up a large portion of the California Health Benefit Exchange population. Many potential enrollees have limited English skills, which could get in the way of obtaining coverage. ... "We estimate that about 2.65 million nonelderly adults will be eligible for the exchange. Of that 2.65 million, about 67% of them are people of color," UCLA researcher Daphna Gans said. "That's mostly Latino, followed by African American, then Asian" (Gorn, 2/29). 

Georgia Health News: New Bill Would Restore Child-Only Policies
An unintended consequence of the Affordable Care Act was a halt in sales of "child-only"' policies in Georgia and other states. ... The measure, which passed the House Insurance Committee on Wednesday, would require insurers that sell individual health policies in Georgia to also offer child-only plans during an open enrollment period. The legislation would allow insurers to impose a surcharge of up to 50 percent of the premium if a child has been uninsured for more than 63 days prior to the application for coverage (Miller, 2/29). 

The Connecticut Mirror: Two Years After Passage, Courtney Still Selling Health Reform
Joe Courtney held up the poster-sized chart and pointed to the numbers printed in purple: 7,700 seniors in his Eastern Connecticut district got a discount on their prescription drug payments last year, thanks to federal health reform. ... The third-term congressman from Vernon hasn't missed many chances to tout the upsides of a law that many of his fellow Democrats have not gone out of their way to promote (Levin Becker, 2/29).