HHS Announces More Grants To Bolster State Insurance Exchanges
On Thursday, HHS announced new grants to states developing their own health insurance exchanges under the federal health reform law, The Hillâs "Healthwatch" reports (Millman, "Healthwatch," The Hill, 1/20).
The law mandates that the exchanges must be operational by 2014 to serve individuals and small businesses (Vesely, Modern Healthcare, 1/20).
In July 2010, HHS offered $51 million to help states with setting up the exchanges (California Healthline, 7/30/10). HHS did not reveal the amount of the new grants.
HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said that the new grants will help states "maintain momentum" in their efforts to implement exchanges. She said states can apply for short-term funding or multi-year grants.
According to Sebelius, the funding "recognizes that states are at very different stages in exchange planning and have different needs." She noted, "As you might imagine, the needs of the state of California ⦠may be very different from a very small state" ("Healthwatch," The Hill, 1/20).
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