Wisconsin DHS head doesn’t know how many may lose insurance

The head of the Wisconsin Department of Health Services says she doesn’t know how many people may lose insurance in the state under the proposed federal health care overhaul.

Linda Seemeyer was asked about the proposal Tuesday during a forum hosted by Wisconsin Health News.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office predicted 24 million would lose coverage nationwide over the next decade. Liberal groups have projected that 129,000 people could lose coverage in Wisconsin next year and nearly 900,000 could go without by 2026.

But Seemeyer says she doesn’t have an estimate.

She says, “I really don’t know what’s going to happen there” and “I don’t think anybody knows at this point how many would gain or lose coverage.”

Seemeyer says that number will depend on what happens in the marketplace.