After Months Of Debate, Iowa Gov. Signs Health Care Expansion Into Law

Media outlets offer coverage of developments In Iowa, Missouri, Michigan and Pennsylvania regarding the Medicaid expansion.

The Associated Press: Governor Signs Health Care Expansion Into Law
Gov. Terry Branstad signed a bill into law Thursday that will expand health care access for Iowa's poorest residents, though officials acknowledge they have significant work ahead to both establish the program and enroll eligible citizens. Branstad signed the legislation in Mason City, a location selected to acknowledge two lawmakers from the region — Republican House Majority Leader Linda Upmeyer and Democratic Sen. Amanda Ragan — who helped broker the final compromise deal in May after months of contentious debate in the Legislature (Lucey, 6/20).

The Associated Press: Pa. GOP Senators Eye Vote On Medicaid Expansion
Legislation to expand Medicaid eligibility in the state under the 2010 federal health care law will come up for a floor vote in the state Senate next week with conditions that will make it more amenable to the chamber's Republican majority, the Senate's top senator said Thursday. Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati, R-Jefferson, said a Medicaid expansion will help the state's hospitals stay afloat (Levy, 6/21).

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Corbett, Feds Jockey Over Efforts To Expand Medicaid In Pa.
For months, Gov. Tom Corbett has said that without concessions he will not expand Medicaid eligibility in Pennsylvania under the federal health care law. Now the Obama and Corbett administrations are increasingly taking their closed-door discussions into public view, as officials from both camps pitch reporters on the reasonableness of their positions (Langley, 6/21).

The Associated Press: Mo. House Creates 2 More Medicaid Student Panels
Having repeatedly rejected a Medicaid expansion, Missouri's Republican-led Legislature now plans to study _ and study, and study — whether to revamp the health care program for the poor before it convenes again in 2014. House Speaker Tim Jones created two new panels Thursday to examine a potential "Medicaid transformation” (6/20).

Detroit Free Press: Snyder Lashes Out At Senate For Failing To Vote On Medicaid Expansion
A frustrated Gov. Rick Snyder lashed out at fellow Republicans who failed to take a vote on expanding Medicaid on Thursday, the last day before breaking for the summer, calling on them to “take a vote, not a vacation.” In a late afternoon news conference, a short time after it was clear that the Senate was making plans to adjourn, Snyder was uncharacteristically indignant in criticizing fellow Republicans for failing to vote, despite what he said was a majority of support for Medicaid expansion by Michiganders; the House, which passed the expansion last week, and even by other members of the Republican caucus (Erb, 6/20).