“There are two primary choices in life: to accept conditions as they exist, or accept the responsibility for changing them.” – Denis Waitley
Julian Bond Analyzes Racists See Page 24 •
C e l e b r a t i n g 4 8 Ye a r s o f S e r v i c e
•
Serving More Than 50,000 African American Readers Throughout The Metropolitan Area / Vol. 48, No. 32 May 23 - May 29, 2013
First lady Michelle Obama points to the students as she sits with Bowie State University President Dr. Mickey L. Burnim, left, and Provost Dr. Weldon Jackson. /Source: AP. See Story on Page 4.
Health Benefit Exchange Takes Root By Barrington M. Salmon WI Staff Writer The District of Columbia recently passed a critical federal test of its Health Benefits Exchange IT system, and that has paved the way for the city to push toward establishing a comprehensive health plan for uninsured resi-
dents. “It’s exciting news. We’re the first state to pass the ‘second wave,’” said Mila Kofman, executive director of the DC Health Benefit Exchange Authority. “Tax credits, health plan options – all are related to IT. I’ve joked with my team that we’re an IT start-up. This is a major, major
win for us.” “This means that we keep going as a state-based exchange. If we’d failed, the feds would have come in to run the exchange. This was major to have this done so quickly.” Kofman said staff at the exchange is focused on bringing the new health insurance marketplace
in D.C. online. The Health Benefit Exchange (HBX) was created in response to President Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act (ACA). The federal government gave the District $82 million in grants to pay for developing the IT infrastructure and going forward, the plan is for the exchange to be self-sustaining financially.
Visit us online for daily updates and much more @ www.washingtoninformer.com. Tommy Wells Enters Mayoral Race Page 5
Howard University Cancer Center Named for Zora Brown Page 18
“For pennies of investment of city dollars, we’re getting a great bang for our buck,” she said. “The feds supply us with 100 percent for operations. That ends during the calendar year 2015.” “Before federal health care reform, it was hard to find in-
Follow us on
Grassroots Lobbyists Descend on City Hall Page 21
See EXCHANGE on Page 8
and on DCTV 95 & 96