“The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has awarded Illinois nearly $32.8 million to continue getting ready to launch a major piece of the federal health care reform law.
The money was granted to help develop the state’s health care exchange, to be up and running by Jan. 1, 2014.
Each state health exchange is intended to be a marketplace in which families, individuals and small businesses have understandable and affordable choices for health plans — and not just any choices, but choices as good as those available to the folks they elect to Congress, according to HHS.
Illinois is one of six states to share in the latest round of federal money, $181 million, for health exchange development. Nevada, Oregon, South Dakota, Tennessee and Washington also received grants.
For more, see The News-Gazette Thursday.