Full Speed On Investigation Of Failed Health Exchange

In a welcome development, the federal inspector general will investigate the massive failures of the Maryland Health Exchange — something the Democratic leadership of the Maryland Legislature has equivocated over, probably hoping the whole thing will be fixed and forgotten before the June and November elections.

The screw-up has cost Maryland taxpayers millions of dollars and damaged the gubernatorial candidacy of Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown, the absentee landlord put in charge of the program’s rollout.

The formation of a special joint committee of House and Senate Maryland lawmakers to oversee repairs to the floundering exchange and the auditors who are supposed to measure how well the exchange is performing is little more than a delaying tactic.

The auditing itself will not begin until after the March 31 enrollment deadline. A report from the audit isn’t scheduled to be complete until halfway through 2015.

By then, we’ll have a new governor in office, and that could be Brown.
More