National health care battle moving to the states

One of the major provisions in the federal health reform law calls on states to establish health insurance exchanges by 2014. These exchanges were envisioned as virtual “open air markets,” managed by new state agencies, where consumers could compare insurance offerings and choose the best health coverage at the best price.

Good idea. But early indications are that states are using the exchanges to create their own vision of health-care reform, including everything from cross-state competition to single payer, government-run health care.

Massachusetts created its own insurance exchange of sorts...