Kaye Beach
Feb. 23, 2011
The majority of Oklahoma voters have made it clear that they do not want ObamaCare or the health information exchange that plugs our state into ObamaCare. Apparently what the citizens of Oklahoma wants doesn’t really matter because the Oklahoma legislature is pushing forward regardless. They say they are going to build a “state-based, free market health insurance exchange” They can call it anything they want but they fact is that we are building it for the purpose of fulfilling the ObamaCare mandate. We should not be enabling the government takeover of our health care!
These legislators are pulling every trick in the book to insure that Oklahoma is in compliance with the unconstitutional federal health care mandate.
OK-SAFE reports;
Joint Committee Finally Releases Report – Big Surprise! They Want Exchange AND Another Trust
OK-SAFE, Inc. – After almost a two month delay, the Joint Legislative Committee on Federal Health Care Reform has finally released it’s final report, 3 weeks after the start of OK legislative session.
The Governor and Leadership had seen the committee report much earlier, and legislation implementing the committee’s findings has already been planned and reserved.
No Big Surprises
The Legislature’s February 22, 2012 press release contained no big surprises, especially for those who have been following this state’s years-long implementation of health care reform, via both the HITECH Act of 2009 and PPACA (“Obama Care”).
There was no real surprise either, when yesterday (2/21/12) it was confirmed that SB 1116, a bill to repeal the title of law that created the Oklahoma Health Information Exchange Trust (OHIET), would not get a hearing in the Senate.
The Senate Leadership, and it’s author Sen. Brian Crain, made sure the bill would not get heard.
February 22, 2012 Press Release Excerpt:
“The committee’s final report (attached) recommends that Oklahoma: Continue to fight the federal health care law in court; better educate the public about ways to improve their health; prepare for a dramatic expansion of Medicaid eligibility due to PPACA; begin developing a market-based state health insurance exchange in order to prevent imposition of a federal exchange in Oklahoma; form a permanent legislative committee to monitor issues related to the federal health care law; and increase medical residency programs in order to address current and future doctor shortages – particularly in rural areas.
What the committee is not mentioning here is the fact the work to align Oklahoma with all the technology provisions of both the HITECH Act of 2009, and the PPACA, has already been started, facilitated by legislation creating electronic health records, and by the creation of a public trust called the Oklahoma Health Information Exchange Trust, or OHIET. If the state builds an exchange, it may say OKLAHOMA (Insure Oklahoma) on the outside, but the inside functionality, and IT standards, will be all federally compliant and interoperable.
AxXiom for Liberty 
Why does no one mention that Sen. Tom Coburn came out and supported a state-based option, since the only other option is to use a federal system? If Dr. Coburn says it’s the right thing to do, I trust him.
Right now, the absence of this exchange is all that stands between us and the federal takeover of our health care. Coburn is wrong on this point.