They Didn’t Want To … But Some GOP Governors Warm To Medicaid Expansion
Still, cost concerns and other political pressures continue to be in play. Here's the latest on Medicaid expansion debates in Tennessee, Montana, Illinois, Ohio and Kansas.
Bloomberg:
Tennessee Shows How Republicans Are Learning To Love Obamacare
Republican-led states that blocked Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion have found a way to embrace it, under pressure from businesses to tap the flood of federal dollars it brings. Tennessee’s Republican Governor Bill Haslam called lawmakers into a special session this week to consider accepting federal money to extend public health-care assistance to more of the poor. (Olorunnipa and Newkirk, 2/3)
Independent Record:
Conservative Group Targeting GOP Legislators Who Won’t Sign Anti-Medicaid-Expansion Pledge
A conservative group is targeting Republican state legislators who won’t sign a pledge to oppose Medicaid expansion in Montana, holding events this week in the lawmakers’ districts to publicize the no-pledge stance. Americans for Prosperity-Montana -- part of the conservative, free-market organization founded by the billionaire owners of Koch Industries of Wichita, Kansas -- also is sending postcards and making telephone calls into the Republicans’ districts, telling voters to call the lawmakers and ask them to oppose Medicaid expansion as part of “Obamacare.” (Dennison, 2/2)
The Chicago Tribune:
Illinois Medicaid Expansion Could Carry Hefty Price
One thing is clear with respect to Medicaid expansion in Illinois: It will cost more than anticipated. How much more is the question. State lawmakers in 2013 expanded the definition of who was eligible for the federal-state program that provides free health care for the poor, with the federal government agreeing to foot the bill for new members through 2016 as part of the Affordable Care Act. (Hirst, 2/2)
The Chicago Tribune:
Medicaid Cost Estimates Soar
When state legislators voted to open up Medicaid to more people starting in 2014, they estimated it would cost the state $573 million through 2020. But higher-than-expected enrollment and higher per-member cost estimates could mean the cost to the state is north of $2 billion. (Tribune graphics, 2/2)
Cleveland Plain Dealer:
Premiums For Medicaid Enrollees, Infant Mortality Prevention Targeted In Gov. John Kasich's Budget
As expected, Gov. John Kasich's two-year state budget continues to fund Medicaid expansion but it also tweaks the program to encourage Ohioans to move off the state- and federally-funded health insurance program. ... More than 450,000 Ohioans have signed up under the expansion -- more than 120 percent greater than the Kasich administration initially projected. Kasich wants to charge premiums for adults above 100 percent of the federal poverty level -- more than $11,770 for an individual or $24,250 for a family of four. The premiums would cost $15 to $22 a month. (Borchardt, 2/2)
Kansas Health Institute News Service:
Budget Crisis Makes Medicaid Expansion Tough Sell
Kansas’ worsening budget problems are making it harder to generate a legislative discussion about expanding Medicaid. Rep. Tom Sloan, a moderate Republican from Lawrence, is attempting to piece together an expansion proposal that he hopes Gov. Sam Brownback and GOP conservatives might be willing to consider. He’s borrowing elements from plans crafted by conservative Republican governors in Indiana, Tennessee, Wyoming and other states that have received or are seeking federal approval for more private-sector approaches to expansion. (McLean, 2/2)
