Iowa will receive an additional
$6.8 million from the federal government to help it establish an online
health-insurance exchange, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
announced Thursday.<o:p></o:p>
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The grant is part of $1.5 billion
in additional funding to 11 states to implement the exchanges, which are
required to be operating by Jan. 1, 2014, under the Patient Protection and
Affordable Care Act, or "Obamacare." <o:p></o:p>
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With this funding and two
previous grants, Iowa has received a total of $41.2 million to establish an
exchange.<o:p></o:p>
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Last month, Gov. Terry Branstad notified
the department that Iowa will pursue a state-federal
partnership to develop and operate an exchange, one of three options the state
had for building the mandatory exchanges.<o:p></o:p>
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The latest grant "will be used to develop
an In-Person Assister Program that will provide services to educate consumers
about their health care coverage options, help consumers file applications to
receive eligibility determinations for insurance affordability programs, and
provide guidance on comparing and selecting coverage options to enroll in
Qualified Health Plans," according to a summary on the department's
website.