Is Daugaard just planning or actually implementing Obamacare? UPDATE: Exchange can be established WITHOUT legislative action.

[UPDATE: Looks like Daugaard can implement Obamacare without the blessings of the legislature:

The Governor has stated that South Dakota will not pursue legislation to establish a health insurance exchange during the 2012 legislative session, citing lack of guidance from the federal government and concerns about the Affordable Care Act.⁸ If, however, the state ultimately decides to pursue a state-based exchange, the Department of Insurance‘s review of the legal and regulatory authority for operation of the exchange found the Insurance Director currently has “ample rulemaking authority” to set marketing and sales standards for both inside and outside the exchange.⁹ Once federal requirements for qualified health plans and health plan certification have been adopted, the state will assess the ability of the Division of Insurance to certify health plans in the exchange and draft a standardized application.

Editor note: The state implemented Common Core Standards vit the State Board of Education without legislative action and pre-schools have been created via federal Title I and Headstart despite legislation actions that refused to approve pre-K programming.]

Remember this from January this year:

Gov. Dennis Daugaard has announced that his administration will not pursue legislation to establish a health insurance exchange during this year's South Dakota's legislative session.

In a news release, Daugaard says there is too much uncertainty right now to recommend setting up the kind of exchange included in President Barack Obama's health care overhaul. The law envisions that states would build the exchanges, which would be designed to help people who buy individual insurance plans.

The governor says the U.S. Supreme Court might strike down the health care law, or Congress might eventually repeal it.

Daugaard says he hopes the law is struck down. But he says South Dakota will apply for a federal grant to plan for an exchange in case the state is eventually required to establish one.

In yesterday's Argus Leader was a job opening for this:

Health Insurance Exchange Project Manager
Incumbent will serve as the BIT Health Insurance Exchange (HIX) Project Manager. Incumbent will serve as the BIT representative to other state agencies involved in implementing the exchange and will oversee the work of two other HIX BIT analysts.

Duties will include researching and understanding Federal regulations needed to implement a Health Care Insurance Exchange, part of the Affordable Care Act, for South Dakota; working with other agencies to coordinate efforts to implement HIX; working with BIT Managers to understand the functionality of existing/new computer applications that would ultimately support the implementation of the HIX; and coordinating development work with BIT Development Managers as needed.

Sounds more like South Dakota is actually implementing Obamacare. Since March 2011 Teresa Bray, who lost her campaign for Secretary of State in 2010, is Health Insurance Exchange Project Manager for the Department of Social Services. Kea Warne, another former Secretary of State employee, is the governor's Health Insurance Exchange Project Manager. And on May 19, 2011 Lt. Governor Matt Michels chaired a Health Insurance Exchange Task Force Meeting which minutes said:

Chair Michels talked about how the State of South Dakota is opposed to PPACA and South Dakota joined other states in the PPACA lawsuit.   He mentioned that in spite of the lawsuit, an exchange can serve the people of South Dakota and if South Dakota does not establish an exchange, the federal government will run and regulated an exchange for us.  We need to be ready for 2014 no matter what happens in late court decisions.

And remember what I posted earlier:

Governor Daugaard's campaign promise was to sign any bill repealing ObamaCare that crossed his desk....and he made good on his promise by making sure no such bill crossed his desk this session.  He had several chances to influence those bills by giving "talking points" to legislators to thwart the bills' passage in committee hearings.  Sen. Deb Peters was heard in the halls saying, "I have talking points from (Lt. Governor) Matt Michels to oppose this bill."

"This bill" just happened to be a Health Care Compact bill giving South Dakota the option to join in a compact with other states to opt out of ObamaCare.  Once a majority of states pass such laws, Congressional approval would be sought and granted because no Congressman would vote against the state they represent. 

It is very clear that the SDGOP leadership says then are against Obamacare as they are happily implementing it. And they are not supporting those who want the South Dakota legislature to take a strong stand against Obamacare. So a warning to conservatives, beware of SDGOP leaders wanting campaign money in order to defeat Obama this year. And be careful who you support in the primary.

UPDATE: Here is a link to a April 2011 report on the Health Exchange plan.