Empty Promises of Arkansas’ Medicaid Private Option Debunked in New Report
- BY FGA
So-Called Private Option an ObamaCare Expansion of Medicaid
FLORIDA – Legislators who were assured Arkansas’ so-called Private Option draws ObamaCare dollars without having to expand Medicaid were sold a false bill of goods. A new report published by the Foundation for Government Accountability (FGA) debunks the many empty promises made by the Arkansas politicians who passed the plan last year.
Sold as a market-oriented alternative to ObamaCare, the private option is nothing more than ObamaCare’s Medicaid expansion by another name. In The Empty Promises of Arkansas’ Medicaid Private Option, FGA Director of Research Jonathan Ingram identifies the loftiest promises made by those Arkansas pols in the press, during floor speeches and on social media and refutes them with state and federal data, the outcomes of previous Medicaid expansions and other academic sources.
“There is a dangerous misconception among many state leaders that Arkansas’ Private Option is the conservative alternative to ObamaCare,” Ingram explained. “This report sets the record straight; the Private Option is a Medicaid expansion wolf in sheep’s clothing that attacks patients, taxpayers and the state budget.”
Some of the empty promises of the Arkansas Private Option:
EMPTY PROMISE: The Private Option does not expand Medicaid.
FACT: The Private Option is a traditional Medicaid expansion by another name, using Medicaid funding to provide Medicaid benefits.
EMPTY PROMISE: The Private Option is cheaper than traditional Medicaid expansion or no expansion.
FACT: The Private Option’s alleged “savings” are built on faulty assumptions.
EMPTY PROMISE: The Private Option protects patients.
FACT: The Private Option will hurt the most vulnerable.
EMPTY PROMISE: The Private Option is the Medicaid block grant Republicans always wanted.
FACT: The Private Option is a new entitlement, not a block grant.
Click here to access the report for information on these and other empty promises.
“Every legislator exploring Arkansas’ so-called Private Option should be on high alert,” Ingram said. “The Arkansas Private Option expands Medicaid enrollment, costs taxpayers more and hurts the truly vulnerable. No legislator concerned about the well-being of their state’s patients and taxpayers should pursue this empty, short-sighted plan.”
Based in Naples, Florida, The Foundation for Government Accountability promotes better lives for individuals and families by equipping policymakers with principled strategies to replace failed health and welfare programs nationwide. FGA’s Uncover ObamaCare initiative is a nation-wide effort to educate the American people and their representatives in government about the risks ObamaCare poses to patients and taxpayers throughout the states.
Read the Report: The Empty Promises of Arkansas’ Medicaid Private Option
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