Columbus, OH – In a new study for the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, The Buckeye Institute’s Rea S. Hederman Jr. and the Galen Institute’s Doug Badger argue that Congress and the administration should empower states—as opposed to Washington—to devise new ways to make health insurance more affordable for more people. The way to do that is through the Affordable Care Act’s section 1332.
As repeal of the Affordable Care Act floundered at the federal level, Hederman, an expert in health care policy, was one of the first to propose using section 1332 waivers as a way to allow states to waive parts of the law and take back the ability to regulate their insurance markets. Hederman, and co-author Dennis G. Smith, outlined this approach in the report Returning Health Care Power to the States.
In this newest Mercatus report, Federal Efforts to Stabilize ACA Individual Markets through State Innovation, Hederman and Badger note, “In light of gridlock in Washington regarding health care, many politicians and states are looking for alternative ways to make the health insurance market more free. The paper offers new policy perspectives on stabilizing health insurance markets and offers concrete proposals to federal and state lawmakers and regulators for exploring innovative solutions, primarily through the 1332 waiver process.”
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