Andrew Deskins
Argonaut
Near the end of 2012, Idaho Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter said the state would create its own health insurance exchange.
“Despite our best efforts, the law remains in place, and almost certainly will for the foreseeable future. There will be a health insurance exchange in Idaho. The only question is who will build it,” Otter said.
Otter’s announcement was mostly for show. By the time Idaho set about making a state exchange, it was too late to fully set up the process. As a result, Idahoans looking to sign up for insurance were stuck with the faulty healthcare.gov when enrollment began last October.
Otter also refused to expand Medicaid for the poorest Idahoans — even though the federal government would pick up the tab for the first three years. After that, they would continue to pay 90 percent of Medicaid expansion costs.
According to Regence BlueShield of Idaho Spokeswoman Georganne Benjamin, this decision leaves approximately 100,000 Idahoans unable to afford health insurance.
In spite of Idaho’s indecisiveness, the future of the new health care law is starting to look brighter and brighter, according to yourhealthidaho.org Spokeswoman Jody Olson.
“The number of Idahoans who have selected a health insurance plan on yourhealthidaho.org has increased by 1,000 percent from a month ago,” said Olson in an interview with Boise State Public Radio.
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 25,828 Idahoans completed applications for insurance using the exchange. A large portion of them — 24 percent — are members of the coveted 18-34 age group. If Otter had begun working to create exchanges as soon as he knew Obamacare was the law of the land in 2010, the number of sign-ups would likely be higher.
While this is an improvement, Otter should have fully embraced the law and expanded Medicaid. The percentage of Idahoans who have signed up for coverage jumps to 7.8 percent from 1.6 percent currently, if you add the approximately 100,000 eligible for Medicaid under the expansion.
Otter chose to delay implementation and deny the expansion of Medicaid for the sake of playing politics. He is left with sign-up numbers that are solid, but not anything outstanding to point to in a fight for re-election.
That may prove to be shortsighted as his preeminent opponent, Republican Sen. Russ Fulcher, is already pouncing on him for his half-hearted embrace of the law.
Fulcher’s misleading rhetoric attacking Otter is another shining example of Idaho Republican politics, and Republican politics nationwide. Fulcher believes the “free-market” should be allowed to fix health care. If Otter had embraced the law, he would be able to point to a success and say he put the needs of Idaho above petty partisanship.
Of course that would have required foresight, and in the Capitol where the legislature is currently discussing bills to deny service based on religion, and to allow guns to be carried on college campuses, foresight is a rare thing.
Idaho deserves politicians who bet on the best interests of voters, rather than gambling with their health and welfare in the name of party ideology.
Andrew Deskins can be reached at [email protected]