Readers of this blog know that no one has been more critical of Obamacare's flaws––particularly over the impact the program has had on middle class consumers in the individual health insurance market.
And, readers already know that no one has been more supportive of the Medicaid expansion from the very beginning.
Now, the Trump administration wants to give states the option to abolish the open-ended federal funding of Medicaid via fixed block grants for only a small portion of those eligible, or potentially eligible.
Critics argue that by fixing these funds, particularly at a growth rate lower than paid in the past, will result in less money and if there is less money there will be fewer benefits and fewer people covered given the flexibility states would have to redefine the program.
That is a logical conclusion.
But it's a lot more complicated than that.
Showing posts with label Obamacare Medicaid. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Obamacare Medicaid. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 11, 2020
Monday, January 13, 2020
Republican Health Care Reform: The Congressional Republicans' Irrational Opposition to Medicaid
Congressional Republicans have consistently, if not unanimously, opposed Obamacare's expansion of Medicaid.
Their opposition is irrational.
It is also unpopular with voters. In dark red states like Nebraska, Idaho and Utah voters recently went over the heads of their Republican legislators and governors by approving referendums to expand the program. And, Kansas is about to become the 37th state to expand Medicaid under Obamacare after a bipartisan agreement between the Democratic governor and Republican leaders in the legislature.
While Obamacare's individual health insurance reforms and subsidies have been a disaster for the middle class (See: Obamacare is "Stable" at an Incredibly Unstable Place), the Medicaid expansion in the states that have approved it has covered millions of people that would never have been covered otherwise––at a cost that could never have been less.
Republican opposition has centered around a number of arguments. Let's take a look at each of them.
Their opposition is irrational.
It is also unpopular with voters. In dark red states like Nebraska, Idaho and Utah voters recently went over the heads of their Republican legislators and governors by approving referendums to expand the program. And, Kansas is about to become the 37th state to expand Medicaid under Obamacare after a bipartisan agreement between the Democratic governor and Republican leaders in the legislature.
While Obamacare's individual health insurance reforms and subsidies have been a disaster for the middle class (See: Obamacare is "Stable" at an Incredibly Unstable Place), the Medicaid expansion in the states that have approved it has covered millions of people that would never have been covered otherwise––at a cost that could never have been less.
Republican opposition has centered around a number of arguments. Let's take a look at each of them.
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