Don Gaetz, who will be installed as president of the Florida Senate on Tuesday, said he will appoint a "select committee" to study how to implement the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, aka "ObamaCare."
Gaetz's announcement is the latest sign that Florida officials have accepted the inevitable following the re-election of Pres. Barack Obama.
Not everyone is ready to accept the electoral verdict. Americans for Prosperity, a group linked to the ultra-conservative Koch Brothers, called on Florida officials to resume resistance.
“AFP is extremely disappointed in leaders in Florida suggesting that the Sunshine state should create a health insurance exchange,” said Slade O’Brien, AFP’s Florida State Director, in a press release. “An exchange will increase insurance premiums on consumers and taxes on hardworking families. Florida’s best intentions will be masked by the federal government’s onerous requirements.”
The ACA aims to cover 30 million uninsured Americans through a combination of initiatives: expanding Medicaid for those with low incomes; requiring others to obtain insurance, with an online "exchange" to make shopping easier; and offering subsidies on a sliding scale to make coverage affordable.
