Northfield's Sen. Dahle Supports Special Session on Rising Health Insurance Cost

Following reports that customers of Minnesota's healthcare exchange, MNSure, will see their premiums skyrocket, state Senator Kevin Dahle (DFL-Northfield) joined a growing list of legislators as he voiced his support for a special legislative session to address the rising health insurance costs. Dahle and several other Senate Democrats have called for Governor Mark Dayton to bring the legislature back in order to reconsider the solutions they introduced during the regular session.

“We’ve been working at this issue for many months, and I’m glad that House Republicans have indicated that they’d now like to address the problems faced by Minnesota families,” Dahle said in a statement.

“It’s unfortunate timing given the politics of the upcoming election, but we don’t have the luxury of waiting while premium costs rise so quickly. We have to seize this window of opportunity while it’s available to us.”

According to WCCO, 250,000 Minnesotans who buy insurance on the open market and through MNsure are about to see their premiums skyrocket up to 67 percent. Both Democrats and Republicans have called for a special session to address rising cost.

Dahle hopes that the high cost of health insurance will keep both parties at the table and allow legislators to find a bipartisan solution for Minnesota families, according to a news release. Dahle believes southeastern Minnesota legislators have taken the lead on healthcare issues, fighting back against cost inflators and attempting to inform their colleagues about the stakes for a region that has borne the brunt of rising costs in the state.

Image via Michael Hicks, Flickr, used under Creative Commons