Several states are actively considering their own mandate for citizens to carry health insurance given the federal repeal. (Mary­land law­mak­ers are pur­su­ing a plan to re­place the ACA mandate, which re­quires most peo­ple to pay a penalty if they don’t have cov­er­age. States in­clud­ing Cal­i­fornia, Con­necti­cut, Hawaii, Rhode Island, Wash­ing­ton, Min­nesota, New Jer­sey and Vermont, as well as the Dis­trict of Co­lumbia, are pub­licly consid­er­ing sim­i­lar ideas. source: WSJ 2-5-18)

Just imagine the bureaucracy and cost associated with setting up monitoring, controls and a penalty collection system for these states? And hey, do you think it would impact people moving in and out of the state? And what would it do to the assumptions used for federal premium subsidies?

Our greatest political talent seems to be taking a screwed up system and making it worse.