Appearing today in Fosters is an opinion piece by GOP State Representatives Laurie Sanborn and Neal Kurk. It's titled:
Expand Medicaid? Only if you want a state tax Increase
This tells you all you need to know about the level of concern these representatives have for the uninsured population of our state. Their quotes are in red. The opening lines:
Many people in New Hampshire believe that low-income New Hampshire adults should have health insurance. Some low-income adults have it now through their employers, but many do not.
Many people believe. Not these two!
The sad reality is that, once New Hampshire expands Medicaid under Obamare, it will be politically impossible to stop it. Why? Because, for example, when costs inevitably rise, expansion supporters will successfully argue that the state cannot deprive 50-60,000 low-income individuals of their health insurance.
Therefore the solution is to perpetuate the current level of deprivation!
Are we discouraging people who are currently working part-time or in an entry level job from striving for full-time or a higher paying job, just to stay on taxpayer funded health care?
Seriously? Do either of you two have a clue about the cost of living in this state, or the availability of jobs? Why not try talking to people outside of your sphere of glibertarian inanity?
Is it fair to those who pay their full premiums, deductibles and co-pays to have fewer choices of hospitals and doctors than those who pay nothing for their health costs under Expanded Medicaid?
LET THE POORS DIE!
Is it fair that eligibility for expanded Medicaid is based on income only and not assets, so that a 50-year old who lives on a yacht and has a very low income qualifies for free health insurance?
I feel certain that the NH population of low income 50 year old yacht dwellers is roughly the same as the percentage of NH welfare recipients who drive Cadillacs.
Read the whole thing. Nowhere in this opinion piece will you find even the slightest expression of concern for the working poor in our state.
I called Senator Bragdon's office today to beg him to support expanded Medicaid. His aide said she would get the message to him. I asked her to tell him that this is for working families.
ReplyDeleteIs it tabled until the next session or can it be brought up again? If so, I will keep calling about it.
Next year, the Federal government will STOP giving states money to reimburse for uninsured care costs.
ReplyDeleteThe state is going to loose millions in dollars of revenue.
Anyone that has spent a minimum of effort to understand the ACA knows that this is definitely going to happen.
There has yet to be a single person in the Legislature to propose any reasonable method for the state of NH to replace that missing revenue.
As Always, the Legislature manages to do NOTHING.