Senator says let the states have a go at health care reform

Right up there with his opposition to a public plan option (unfair playing field, cost shifting, etc.), Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) made clear to reporters May 7 his hope that federal health care reform will be flexible to individual state needs.

"There is an enormous reservoir of expertise, experience and field-tested reform," he says. "We should take advantage of that by placing states at the center of efforts tailored to meet coverage and affordability goals so that we can use approaches that best reflect their unique needs and demographic."

While he says "some of the larger states are disasters," others have made strong advances in their own health care reform initiatives. (Not surprisingly, Utah is high on that list.) He'd like to see 50 state laboratories "where we can pick and choose among the best programs."

But what about ERISA? Hatch contends that it's a tricky issue. Even so, "we’ve got to find ways in the states to help us with efficiencies, with quality, with deliverability, with interoperability, with all of those things, and I think that can be done. Now, will some of those states mess it up? Yeah … but most states would run a system a lot better than it could be done here in Washington."

Do you agree? Would you like to see reform happen on a state-by-state basis, or are broad federal regulations in order? Share your thoughts below.