BREAKING: MONTANA GOV. SIGNS OBAMACARE MEDICAID EXPANSION AFTER BACKERS MANIPULATE LEGISLATIVE RULES TO WIN
- BY FGA
BREAKING: MONTANA GOV. SIGNS OBAMACARE MEDICAID EXPANSION AFTER BACKERS MANIPULATE LEGISLATIVE RULES TO WIN
MEDICAID WELFARE EXPANSION DEFEATED IN TN, UT, WY, AND KS
Montana Gov. Steve Bullock just signed ObamaCare Medicaid welfare expansion into law this morning, making the Treasure State the only state to enact legislation expanding Medicaid to able-bodied, working-age adults in 2015. Montana stands alone as many other states rejected expansion, opting instead to protect taxpayers from more ObamaCare and to preserve the safety net that protects our most vulnerable citizens.
Lawmakers in Tennessee, Utah, and Wyoming denied their Republicans governors’ ObamaCare Medicaid expansion plans, while legislative leaders in Kansas considered―and then promptly rejected―that state’s Medicaid expansion plans.
Leaders in Arkansas moved swiftly towards ending its “Private Option” ObamaCare Medicaid expansion, setting an expiration date of December 2016, and mailing notices to the individuals captured in the Medicaid expansion to announce the end of the welfare expansion. Legislators in New Hampshire have defunded any extensions of its ObamaCare Medicaid expansion, which is also set to expire in 2016.
Other states acted pre-emptively to thwart Medicaid expansion, and to send a message to Washington politicians that they won’t force their residents to live in an ObamaCare state. The Alabama Senate, for example, just passed a resolution declaring that Alabama will not expand Medicaid in accordance with ObamaCare. The resolution had 21 Senate co-sponsors.
“It’s a strange world we live in when Montana’s Republican politicians would team up with a Democratic governor and ObamaCare cheerleaders to put the truly needy on the chopping block in order to keep President Obama’s signature law on life support,” said Tarren Bragdon, CEO of the Foundation for Government Accountability.
“The tactics ObamaCare supporters used in Montana to manipulate the legislative process in order to expand Medicaid and the welfare state represent the very worst of government, especially after Medicaid expansion was already defeated twice before in the state. It’s clear that pro-expansion politicians knew the only way to win was to cheat.”
Montana’s unpopular ObamaCare Medicaid expansion was unlikely to pass until a gang of moderate Republican legislators sided with the Democrat minority to change the long-standing rules of the Montana House. Initially, they weakened the ability for Montana House committees to reject bills not fit for passage by allowing themselves the ability to resurrect dead legislation. Then when that wasn’t enough, they decreased the threshold for voting on bills with unfavorable reports.
During legislative debate, language was stripped from Senate Bill 405―allowing Bullock to ignore the bill’s provisions and negotiate any deal he wants with the federal government. Montana’s Medicaid expansion will take effect after October 1st.
Meanwhile, a new report released by FGA sheds light on what Montana can expect now that it expanded Medicaid welfare through ObamaCare—enrollment over projections, added costs to taxpayers, and more hardship for truly needy patients. You can read the FGA report here.
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