Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf
Elections do have consequences, and the consequence of Pennsylvania electing a Democratic governor is a good one. Gov. Tom Wolf is
the first state among the 34 using the federal Obamacare exchange to have a back-up plan in case the Supreme Court rules against allowing subsidies for insurance in the federal exchange. He does have one obstacle—his Republican legislature, of course.
Tuesday evening, Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf announced the state this week had submitted an application to the federal government to take over the state's federal exchange. The move would allow Pennsylvania residents to continue to receive federal subsidies towards purchasing health insurance if subsidies on the federal exchange are invalidated by a ruling in the King v. Burwell case expected later this month.
Pennsylvania would also need the approval of its GOP-led legislature if it wanted to set up its own exchange.
"There is no reason to deal with it right now," Steve Miskin, spokesman for the state's House Republicans, told the Philadelphia Inquirer. […]
The governor said in Tuesday's statement that the application for the state to set up its own marketplace does not necessarily mean it will do so.
"However, the responsible thing to do is set up a plan to protect hundreds of thousands of people and I look forward to working with members of the legislature to advance this plan if necessary," Wolf said.
The state's acting insurance commissioner, Teresa Miller,
says that the state could have the takeover of the exchange completed in a few months, well in time for this fall's enrollment. However, and this is a bit of a wrinkle, the state would still rely on the federal exchange to do the expensive and difficult parts of the operation, eligibility determinations and enrollment. That's how the state could get up and running so quickly, but might also call into question whether it is really operating its own, separate exchange as the court may define it.