TN insurance commissioner asks senators for more flexibility

Tennessee Insurance Commissioner Julie Mix McPeak urged Congress on Wednesday to give states more power to regulate their insurance markets, reports Michael Collins.

Testifying at a Senate hearing, McPeak stressed that congressional Republicans should return as much flexibility to the states as possible as they move forward with plans to repeal the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare.

Additional flexibility would help states tailor insurance regulations to their own unique markets and could help provide stability in states like Tennessee, where the individual market is struggling, McPeak said.

“Tennessee’s experience, which is likely not unique, suggests a need for policy changes,” McPeak said.

McPeak was one of four witnesses who testified before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee about how to stabilize the individual health-insurance market as Congress plows ahead with plans to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act.

Note: Text of the commissioner’s remarks is HERE. Sen. Lamar Alexander’s press release (he chairs the committee) is HERE.