NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Gov. Bill Haslam says Tennessee will not create a state-run health insurance exchange, but the Republican governor says he remains undecided about whether to expand Medicaid.
Haslam said the lack of information from the federal government about the insurance marketplaces was "scary" and that that he considered it a business decision to let the federal government run the program.
Haslam acknowledged that getting a state-run exchange approved by the Legislature would be a difficult prospect.
Many Republican lawmakers ran for office on a platform of opposing President Barack Obama's health care plan. Tea party supporters protested the idea of a state-run exchange outside the Capitol last week, deriding it as "Haslamcare."
The governor said a decision on Medicaid expansion may not come until after the Legislature adjourns this spring.