In less than a week, Minnesota will usher in a new era of health care with the Oct. 1 launch of MNsure. The health insurance exchange program will provide Minnesotans with an array of insurance plan choices to fit their budgets and address their medical needs.

It’s too soon to judge how successful the program will be, but early indications are promising. The rates recently unveiled by Commerce Commissioner Mike Rothman are among the lowest when compared against other states’ exchange programs. And those rates were already lower than projected by the Congressional Budget Office.

The Minnesota Hospital Association, which has advocated an exchange program for years, also is optimistic. They’ve been researching results in other states, especially Massachusetts, which already have exchange programs in place. In Massachusetts, for example, MHA found that not only were more people obtaining health insurance, but they were accessing regular medical care until waiting for a health crisis to send them to the emergency room. MHA also discovered another byproduct of the exchanges was that more employers were offering health insurance for their workers.

Minnesota’s program includes an expansion of Medical Assistance, which means free health care for more of the state’s low and moderate-income families. A family of four squeezing by on $31,323 or less a year, would be eligible for such care and those who exceed that income would find rates much more favorable under the exchange.

The plans are ranked by their deductibles and coverage. A bronze plan, for instance would have a higher deductible than a platinum plan. But it gives consumers a wider range of options for coverage. A young person with relatively few health problems might opt for the higher deductible and lower-cost bronze or silver plan while a senior experiencing more health issues may choose a gold or platinum plan.

The cost of the various policies will be offset in many cases by premium assistance, typically through tax credits. For elderly consumers, that assistance ranges from $77 to $320 and could dramatically lower their monthly premiums.

Perhaps one of the most important aspects of the exchange is that insurers can no longer deny coverage for those with pre-existing medical conditions. A recent report found that approximately 57.2 million Americans under the age of 65 have a pre-existing condition that, without reform, could lead to a denial of coverage by an insurance company. That means more than one in every five non-elderly Americans (22.4 percent) was at risk of being denied coverage.

That’s been especially so for those shopping for health insurance on the open market. The Commonwealth Fund reported in a survey of those who tried to buy such coverage between 2004 and 2007, 47 percent of those with health problems said they were either denied coverage, charged a higher premium or had some coverage excluded because of pre-existing conditions. By comparison, 26 percent of those without a health problem reported they were denied coverage.

Providing insurance for thousands of Minnesotans who either couldn’t afford insurance or were denied coverage should also benefit hospitals and clinics that have had to write off bad debt from patients who simply were unable to pay their bills.

MHA expects a few hiccups as Minnesota enters uncharted territory, but is confident any glitches that emerge can be fixed. That won’t stop critics of the Affordable Care Act from continuing their attacks on the bill. Republicans have sought to repeal what they term “Obamacare” so often it’s become a farce.

But Matt Anderson, vice president of regulatory and strategic affairs for MHA, takes the long view. He observed that Medicare faced similar opposition when it was first enacted.

“It was considered an abject failure by its critics and called socialized medicine,” he said. “Now, regardless of your party affiliation, everyone’s very supportive of Medicare.”