The Obama administration had set a deadline of November 16 for states to signal whether they would create their own health insurance “exchanges,” or let the federal government do it.

But the federal government is so desperate to have states do the heavy lifting, and so few states are interested, that for some time (most recently in a National Review Online column that posted yesterday) I have been predicting the Obama administration would push back that deadline. It seems I was right. Well, today’s CQ Healthbeat reports:

The federal government is likely to extend the Nov. 16 deadline for states to decide whether they will run their own health insurance exchanges, according to several state officials. … Instead, HHS officials are expected to set a new deadline for states that want to operate the marketplaces alone but have a rolling deadline with ongoing discussions for states that are interested in a partnership.

What is the difference between a “rolling deadline” and no deadline?

It’s “the REAL ID rebellion” all over again.