Liking it or not, states prepare for health law

Given that the healthcare overhaul remains a lightning rod—just last week, Oklahoma revised a lawsuit against it—even the most tentative discussions about carrying it out in Republican states tend to take place behind closed doors or "underground," as the leader of a healthcare advocacy group in the South put it. Only 13 states and the District of Columbia have formally committed to running their own exchanges. Most of the remaining states, 22 of them run by Republicans, are exploring their options. Along with Arizona, at least three of them—Mississippi, Nevada and New Mexico —have done enough planning to meet the November deadline should they decide to run their own exchanges, according to officials.