HARRISBURG — Republican Party of Pennsylvania Communications Director Megan Sweeney released the following statement regarding Governor Tom Wolf’s decision to nominate former Maryland Secretary of Human Services Ted Dallas as Pennsylvania Secretary of Human Services.
“It’s deeply concerning to see Governor Tom Wolf bring one of the key architects of Maryland’s Obamacare disaster to Pennsylvania,” Sweeney said. “Ted Dallas served as Secretary of Human Resources during Maryland’s calamitous Obamacare rollout, which resulted in a failed state-run website and more than $261 million in wasted taxpayer funds.
“Why is Governor Wolf rewarding Ted Dallas’ track record of failed leadership with a Cabinet position? Isn’t Governor Wolf concerned about reports of Dallas’ failure to lead during one of the biggest government fiascos in Maryland’s history?
“Governor Wolf owes the people of Pennsylvania an explanation as to why a man who oversaw the failed implementation of Obamacare in one state should be chosen to lead Pennsylvania into our health care future.”
Ted Dallas’ Troubling Obamacare Past
On Saturday, Governor Tom Wolf Announced Friday That He Chose Former Secretary of the Maryland Department of Human Resources Ted Dallas To Lead The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services. (“Governor-elect Wolf Announces Heads of Human Services, Health, Drugs and Alcohol, and His Physician General,” WolfTransitionPA.com, 1/17/15)
During His Time As Secretary Of The Maryland Department Of Human Resources, Dallas Played A Key Role In The Botched Implementation Of Maryland’s State-Run Obamacare Exchange. (Aaron C. Davis and Mary Pat Flaherty, “Maryland officials were warned for a year of problems with online health-insurance site,” The Washington Post, 1/11/2014)
- “No One Seemed To Be In Charge” “Late in 2012, the consultant’s reports focused increasingly on warnings that no one seemed to be in charge. Maryland Health Secretary Joshua Sharfstein; Human Resources Secretary Ted Dallas, the Cabinet member in charge of Medicaid; and Rebecca Pearce, the exchange leader, tried to make decisions together.”
- “Nothing Was Moving” “It was a ‘three-headed-monster. . . . The next meeting could overrule the last. It was classic, you know, nothing was moving,’ said one official who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal.”
- “A Troika Of Lower-Level Officials” Including Ted Dallas “Failed To Take The Reins” On Obamacare Efforts “For now, what they’ve got is The Post story, which indicates that a troika of lower-level officials — Sharfstein, state Human Resources Secretary Ted Dallas and exchange leader Rebecca Pearce — failed to take the reins while deadlines were missed and contractors battled each other. And all this happened while O’Malley and Brown were prematurely taking bows.” (“Our say: State website not healthy for some reputations,” The Annapolis Capital, 1/19/2014)
An Independent Auditing Firm Found “No Discernable Plan” For The Obamacare Exchange In Maryland. “…the outside auditor said there was still no discernible plan for building the exchange, no oversight by the state and poor communication among the contractors hired to build the online site…
BerryDunn warned in a Feb. 25 report.” (Aaron C. Davis and Mary Pat Flaherty, “Maryland officials were warned for a year of problems with online health-insurance site,” The Washington Post, 1/11/2014)
After Deciding To scrap Its Healthcare Exchange, The Overall Cost Of The State’s Failed ObamaCare Exchange Stands At $261 Million. (Erin Cox, “Costs rising for state health exchange, which is still ‘not functional,’” The Baltimore Sun, 2/10/2014)
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