On November 8th the Minnesota Department of Commerce held its first meeting of the Health Insurance Exchange Advisory Task Force which is charged with providing options in setting up a health insurance exchange for Minnesota in compliance with the federal Affordable Care Act. In his opening remarks, Chair and Commerce Commissioner Rothman informed the Task Force that not only will their recommendations impact the health insurance market but also public health.
We appreciate the steps taken by the Dayton Administration to implement the Affordable Care Act (ACA) here in Minnesota and applaud the Governor’s commitment to making sure all Minnesotans have access to quality health care.
It is that commitment that the Task Force and its working groups should keep in mind while sifting through the “nitty-gritty” of the Health Insurance Exchange. The Task Force should keep its focus on the people the ACA was enacted to serve. – not simply setting up a ‘Travelocity’ for health insurance. But in this first meeting, I observed the same tendency we’ve seen before to equate health insurance with the actual delivery of health care.
Setting up a new marketplace for insurance companies would not automatically eliminate racial and economic disparities in health care. It would not automatically deliver quality and equitable care. Rather, a ‘Travelocity’ Exchange would provide the health insurance companies with access to new markets and more profits without magically improving health care outcomes and providing quality health care for all.
The Task Force has challenges and opportunities. The first challenge will be to formulate and recommend strong regulation that will prevent the insurance companies from profiting unfairly from the Exchange. The insurance companies should not be allowed to pick and choose the people they cover.
The stakeholders in this process are not just the insurance companies, the Administration and health care providers. We are the ones who need health care. We deserve a health care model that answers to us, not to the health insurance companies and their market ideology or their profit motive.
The Task Force should always be looking for the answer to this question: How will this provide quality health care for all Minnesotans?
Ann Marie Metzger
Ann Marie Metzger is a leader with TakeAction Minnesota’s Together For Health.
