The Marietta Daily Journal – Deal Ga should be OK during shutdown

ATLANTA — Georgia officials are working to make arrangements to ensure state employees whose salaries and benefits are paid with federal funds don’t lose access to health insurance during the shutdown of the federal government, Gov. Nathan Deal said Wednesday.

It’s one example of efforts the state is taking to deal with effects of the shutdown, which began Tuesday. Deal cautioned, however, that covering health insurance for those employees is not something the state could do indefinitely. Deal said he believes Georgia should be able to weather the shutdown without disruption as long as it’s resolved by the end of the month.

“Overall, we are in fairly good shape,” Deal told reporters after a ceremony for the Governor’s Awards for the Arts & Humanities. “Most of our programs are funded with state money.”

Deal reiterated entitlement programs funded by the federal government, including Social Security, would continue. It was not immediately clear how many state employees’ salaries and benefits are paid for with federal funds.

In terms of the state’s new federally run health insurance exchange, Deal said he was not surprised people reported trouble logging onto the electronic system during Tuesday’s debut and was hopeful the exchanges “will become more functional.”

via The Marietta Daily Journal – Deal Ga should be OK during shutdown.