Congressional Republicans’ failure to bring their healthcare bill to the House floor for a vote last week has set off a renewed push to expand one of the Affordable Care Act's most popular provisions — an expansion of Medicaid, the government-run health program that provides insurance primarily to pregnant women, single parents, people with disabilities, and seniors with low incomes.
ADVERTISEMENT
Trumpcare's failure has set off a chain reaction of states trying to expand Obamacare's most popular program
“We can’t be sitting on our hands waiting for the federal government to act," advocates say.
Paul Ryan
But the state currently closest to expanding Medicaid is Kansas, which sent a bipartisan bill to Republican Gov. Sam Brownback on Tuesday and now awaits a signature or veto from the staunch conservative. It is unclear which option he will choose.
While the bill has been in the works for several years, the AHCA's failure has stepped up the urgency, Kansas legislators and interest groups told Business Insider.
A recent study published by the Kansas Hospital Association, a supporter of the bill, found that Kansas has 31 hospitals "vulnerable" to closure, many of which are major employers in rural areas. Expansion could be crucial to ensuring that they are able to stay afloat,
ADVERTISEMENT
Cyzman, the director of KAMU, said primary-care clinics and health centers are clamoring for the expansion because they already treat 14% of Medicaid enrollees in addition to providing $41 million in care to struggling populations that is never compensated. Cyzman said conservative estimates suggest expansion would bring anywhere from $9 million to 15 million back to clinics in reimbursements, which could then be used to provide even more care.
The bill itself was written with congressional Republicans’ repeal efforts in mind. It includes several "poison pill" provisions. One stipulates that if the percentage of federal matching funds for Medicaid drops below its current level of 90%, as the AHCA proposed, the expanded program in Kansas would be eliminated,
the executive director of the Alliance for a Healthy Kansas, a grassroots coalition of more than 100 interest groups spanning healthcare, Chambers of Commerce, and city councils.
"We will gain hundreds of millions of dollars a year that can make a profound impact not just on uninsured Kansans, but protecting hospitals and jobs in these at-risk communities," he told Business Insider.
And if an Obamacare replacement bill isn’t passed for months or years, Kansas would still benefit from the influx of federal funds, advocates say.
ADVERTISEMENT
Still, some in the legislature, like Senate president Susan Wagle, a Republican, say expanding the program ties Kansas to "the whims of the federal government."
You cant let perfect be the enemy of good
While Bollier acknowledged that there are issues with the current administration of KanCare, she said legislators are working to rectify issues in the system and that voting no on the expansion bill with that rationale a "pretty lame excuse."
Anybodys guess what happens next
"To expand Obamacare when the program is in a death spiral is not responsible policy," Brownback spokeswoman Melika Willoughby said in a statement Monday. "Kansas must prioritize the care and service of vulnerable Kansans, addressing their health care needs in a sustainable way, not expanding a failing entitlement program to able-bodied adults."
JOIN OUR PULSE COMMUNITY!
ADVERTISEMENT
Eyewitness? Submit your stories now via social or:
Email: eyewitness@pulse.ng
ADVERTISEMENT