Medicaid expansion Archives

Medicaid expansion is top priority for Missouri Democratic Party’s new acting chair (AUDIO)

July 8, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

The Missouri Democratic Party’s new acting chair is focusing on the August Medicaid expansion ballot measure and the November elections.

Former State Rep. Clem Smith, D-Velda Village Hills, speaks on the Missouri House floor in Jefferson City on May 18, 2018 (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Former State Rep. Clem Smith, D-Velda Village Hills, was elected to the Missouri House in 2010. He served eight years in the House, from 2011-2018, before being forced out by term limits. Smith became acting chair of the party on Thursday.

He says access to health care is critical. He’s pushing for Amendment Two, which will be on your August 4th ballot.

“We believe the state has an appetite for it (Medicaid expansion),” Smith says. “I think the governor saw that too. We saw some jockeying of dates for that ballot initiative being moved to August.”

Medicaid, which is officially known as MO HealthNet, is a federal and state program that assists with medical costs for residents who have limited incomes.

Medicaid expansion supporters, including the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry, say it will create more than 16,000 new jobs annually during its first five years. Supporters also predict it will increase personal income by $1.1 billion annually.

House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, opposes Medicaid expansion, saying it would take dollars out of the classroom. He notes it requires a ten percent match, for the 90 percent draw down. House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith, R-Carthage, says Medicaid expansion will blow a hole in the state operating budget.

As for Clem Smith, he’s confident that Missourians will approve Medicaid expansion at the ballot box next month. He says some GOP lawmakers who oppose Medicaid expansion also supported right-to-work, which Missourians rejected during a 2018 referendum.

“We saw that with the right-to-work that went through (signed into law by then-Governor Eric Greitens in 2017),” says Smith. “The people came and spoke and said we don’t want that, after members of the Legislature voted for it.”

67 percent of Missourians voted against right-to-work, at the August 2018 referendum.

Smith is also focusing on the November elections. He’s hopeful former Vice President Joe Biden (D) will carry Missouri this fall. The last Democratic presidential nominee to carry Missouri was Bill Clinton, who won here in both 1992 and 1996.

Smith is also focusing on the gubernatorial race and the statewide races. State Auditor Nicole Galloway, the presumptive Democratic gubernatorial nominee, is currently the only Democratic statewide officeholder. Smith also wants to see Democrats pick up seats in the Missouri Senate and Missouri House.

Republicans currently have supermajorities in both chambers. They control the Senate 23-8, with three vacancies. The GOP controls the House 113-48, with two vacancies.

Smith is also encouraging residents to fill out the U.S. Census, which takes place every ten years. He tells Missourinet the census is a nonpartisan issue.

“That’s very important because that determines the federal dollars that are coming into our state, how they’re allocated,” Smith says.

Each year, billions of dollars in federal funding goes to hospitals, fire departments and schools based on census data. The Census results also determine the number of seats each state will have in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Missouri now has eight House seats, and has lost two since 1980. That happened in 1981 and again in 2011, when the districts of then U.S. Reps. Wendell Bailey, R-Willow Springs, and Russ Carnahan, D-St. Louis, disappeared.

Smith replaces former Missouri Democratic Party Chair Jean Peters Baker, who is the Jackson County Prosecutor.

Click here to listen to the full interview between Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth and Missouri Democratic Party acting chair Clem Smith, D-Velda Village Hills. It was recorded on July 6, 2020:

Missouri lawmakers to hear Tuesday testimony on two issues: Medicaid expansion and tax credits

June 30, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

Missouri lawmakers will hear testimony on Tuesday in Jefferson City about potential impacts on the state budget, if voters approve Medicaid expansion in August.

House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith, R-Carthage, speaks on the Missouri House floor on May 6, 2020 in Jefferson City (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Medicaid, which is officially called MO HealthNet in Missouri, is a federal and state program that assists with medical costs for residents with limited incomes.

Missouri voters will cast ballots on Amendment Two in August, and the House Budget Committee will hear testimony Tuesday afternoon from 1-5 about potential budget implications.

Missouri’s current Medicaid budget is about $10 billion, about one-third of the state’s approximately $30 billion budget.

Thirty-six states have approved Medicaid expansion.

The Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry has endorsed Amendment Two, describing it as a “pro-jobs measure that will help fuel economic growth throughout our state.” The Chamber cites a report from the Missouri Foundation for Health, which says Medicaid expansion will create more than 16,000 new jobs annually during its first five years, creating more state revenue.

The Missouri Hospital Association also backs Medicaid expansion, saying 10 rural Missouri hospitals have closed since 2014.

Top Missouri GOP leaders oppose Medicaid expansion, warning it will impact the budget, causing cuts in other programs.

House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, says it would take dollars out of the classroom. He notes it would require a ten percent match, for the 90 percent draw down.

House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith, R-Carthage, agrees, warning it will blow a hole in the state operating budget. Governor Mike Parson (R) has expressed similar concerns.

The Budget Committee will also meet Tuesday from 10 a.m. to noon for their annual tax credit review hearing. Tax credits are essentially money that can be offset against a tax liability.

Budget Chairman Smith tells Missourinet that the state issued $551 million in tax credits in fiscal year 2019. Supporters of tax credits in the Legislature say they’re critical to landing key projects, especially in rural Missouri.

But opponents say they decrease funding for other parts of the state budget.

Missouri Chamber of Commerce endorses Medicaid expansion effort

June 12, 2020 By Alisa Nelson

The Republican-leaning Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry says today that it backs a Medicaid expansion effort on the August primary election ballot. In a statement from President Dan Mehan, he says the business group supports Amendment 2 as a “pro-jobs measure” that will help fuel economic growth throughout our state.

Missouri Chamber of Commerce endorses Medicaid expansion effort

“According to economic projections, expanding Missouri’s Medicaid program will boost job creation by 16,000 jobs per year for five years. Likewise, passage will expand our state’s economic output by $2.5 billion,” says Mehan. “While this data makes a clear case for passing Amendment 2, the benefits of Medicaid expansion are even more significant during this time of economic hardship. The Missouri Chamber urges voters to approve Amendment 2 on August 4. Let’s not miss this chance to bolster our economy during this recovery while expanding access to health care for our fellow Missourians.”

Gov. Mike Parson and the influential business group generally agree on political issues. But, many Missouri Republican lawmakers, including Parson, oppose the expansion of Medicaid. Parson has said the state cannot afford to put more people on government-funded health insurance and other priorities like education, public safety and mental health would compete for the same funding.

The Healthcare for Missouri campaign wants to put another 230,000 low-income adults on Medicaid. If approved by voters, those earning up to $18,000 annually could qualify.

The Missouri Hospital Association says ten rural Missouri hospitals have closed since 2014. Missouri is one of 14 states without Medicaid expansion.

Missouri Medicaid expansion effort escapes election ballot removal attempt

June 9, 2020 By Alisa Nelson

The Missouri Supreme Court has rejected a request to have a Medicaid expansion court case transferred to the high court. The decision ends an attempt by conservative group Americans for Prosperity to get the issue kicked off the August primary election ballot.

Missouri Medicaid expansion effort escapes election ballot removal attempt

The organization, along with United for Missouri, filed lawsuits contending the measure unconstitutionally requires the state to spend money without providing a revenue stream to pay for it.

Americans for Prosperity-Missouri State Director Jeremy Cady issued the following statement:

“The Western District Court of Appeals clearly held that the Medicaid Expansion Initiative on the August ballot does – and could – not infringe upon the Legislature’s exclusive right to set spending priorities through the appropriation process, and took its proponents at their word that Amendment 2 of the Missouri Constitution would not do so. While this was not the decision we were seeking, the rationale underlying the Court’s decision, that the separation of powers will be respected, should be viewed as a win for Missourians.”

Healthcare for Missouri’s plan would let Missourians earning up to $18,000 annually qualify for state-funded health insurance – increasing the state’s Medicaid rolls by about 230,000.

Attorney Chuck Hatfield, who’s representing the pro-expansion side, tells Missourinet he believes the courts have made the correct decision.

“An issue like expanding healthcare is a matter for the voters and the Court should not stop the voters from having their say at the ballot box,” he says in a written statement.

Missouri is one of 14 states without Medicaid expansion.

Missouri House approves $34.9 billion budget, following heated debate on Medicaid expansion

April 29, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

The Missouri House voted Wednesday afternoon to give final approval to a $34.9 billion state operating budget. GOP leaders say it’s a budget that’s about $146 million less than the current budget.

Missouri House Speaker Pro Tem John Wiemann, R-O’Fallon, (left) talks with House Majority Floor Leader Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold, on the House floor in Jefferson City on April 27, 2020 (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Most House members wore masks during the debate, which got heated during a discussion about Medicaid expansion. Due to COVID-19 concerns, there were just three people watching debate in the Capitol’s public fourth-floor galleries.

State Rep. Deb Lavender, D-Kirkwood, spoke several times on the House floor, criticizing legislative Republicans for approving $450 million in tax cuts in recent years. She says that money should have been used for education and other essential services.

House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith, R-Carthage, tells the House that the growing Medicaid budget has impacted higher education and other essential programs. He says Medicaid continues to grow.

Chairman Smith says the budget also includes $11 million for institutional staff stipends for corrections officers at the Missouri Department of Corrections, as well as $10 million for county jail reimbursements. Smith had hoped for $15 million, but notes COVID-19 impacted that.

COVID-19 has impacted the budget, and it’s impacted pay for state employees as well. Smith tells Missourinet the budget does not include money for pay raises for state employees.

More than 14,000 state employees work in Jefferson City, making state government the town’s largest employer.

Today’s debate also featured a heated discussion on the Missouri House floor, about the issue of Medicaid expansion.

Representative Lavender tells the House that states that have expanded Medicaid receive $500 more per person, than states like Missouri. But State Rep. Doug Richey, R-Excelsior Springs, argued against it, warning about the federal debt and the federal deficit.

Richey blasted House Democrats on the floor, for arguing for Medicaid expansion. He says it’s immoral and that Democrats want to deficit-spend.

The conversation got more heated when State Rep. Gina Mitten, D-St. Louis, and Rep. Richey spoke over each other during a heated floor debate.

“I dare you to go back to your constituents and say we don’t need no stinking federal dollars,” Mitten told Richey.

Chairman Smith also spoke against Medicaid expansion.

The budget now heads to the Missouri Senate, and Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, tells Missourinet he expects the Senate Appropriations Committee to work through the weekend on the budget.

Medicaid expansion emerging as key issue in Missouri gubernatorial race

February 25, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

Missouri’s GOP governor and his likely November Democratic opponent clashed over the issue of Medicaid expansion, during separate press conferences Tuesday in Jefferson City.

Former Missouri House Speaker Todd Richardson opens a special session on June 11, 2018. Richardson is now the state’s Medicaid director (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Medicaid is a federal and state program that assists with medical costs for residents who have limited incomes. Missouri’s current Medicaid budget is about $10 billion, accounting for about one-third of the state’s $30 billion operating budget.

Governor Mike Parson (R) and State Auditor Nicole Galloway (D) spoke to Capitol reporters at separate press conferences, after they filed for governor at the Kirkpatrick Building.

Missourinet asked both candidates about the issue, during their briefings. Governor Parson opposes Medicaid expansion, saying the system is broken.

“When (Auditor) Galloway was there and (Democratic Governor Jay) Nixon was there, we had over one million people on the state Medicaid roll out of six million. So when you think of that practically, one out of every six people on Medicaid,” Parson says.

Parson also says no one verified the Medicaid rolls, for more than a decade. He also emphasizes that children who qualify for Medicaid should receive it, and that his administration wants them to receive it.

Auditor Galloway, the presumptive Democratic nominee, backs Medicaid expansion. She says rural Missouri hospitals are closing, and that thousands of children have lost their health insurance coverage, under Parson.

Galloway says Medicaid expansion is crucial.

“We have a governor that has kicked 100,000 children off of their health insurance, and he has no vision and no solution on how he’s going to fix that,” Galloway says.

Medicaid expansion supporters, including “Healthcare for Missouri”, note that eight rural Missouri hospitals have closed in recent years. The group says Arkansas and Ohio have expanded Medicaid, and that they’ve used Medicaid-derived savings to cut income taxes.

Governor Parson sees it differently, asking why someone would want to expand a broken system. He also suggests that some lawmakers are grandstanding on the issue, and asks if they’ve trying to sign people up for Medicaid.

House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, also opposes Medicaid expansion. He says it would take dollars out of the classroom, noting it requires a ten percent match for the 90 percent draw down.

Two other Republicans filed today against Governor Parson in the GOP gubernatorial primary: State Rep. Jim Neely, R-Cameron, and Seneca resident Raleigh Ritter.

St. Louis Democrats Jimmie Matthews and Antoin Johnson have filed in the Democratic gubernatorial primary.

Filing will continue on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Kirkpatrick Building. The final day of filing is March 31.

Missouri House Democrats optimistic about November

February 6, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

Missouri House Democrats say the winds of political change are blowing in the Show-Me State, and they’re predicting change at the ballot box in November for the Missouri House.

Six new Missouri House members were sworn in on January 8, 2020. They are, from left to right, State Reps. Mike Person, D-Ferguson, Rasheen Aldridge, D-St. Louis, Mark Sharp, D-Kansas City, Scott Cupps, R-Shell Knob, Yolanda Young, D-Kansas City, and Trish Gunby, D-Manchester (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield, says the November election of Manchester Democrat Trish Gunby in a previously GOP district is significant.

“What that says to us (House Democrats) is that folks are frustrated with the extremes of the Republican Party in Missouri,” Quade recently told Capitol reporters in Jefferson City.

Gunby defeated Ballwin Republican Lee Ann Pitman in November’s special election. Gunby received 3,357 votes to Pitman’s 2,855.

The district, which is in west St. Louis County, was formerly held by Missouri Republican Party executive director Jean Evans.

“So what that means for the upcoming elections is we’re going to continue to talk about the extremism that’s happening here, and the things that Missourians deserve and are asking for, like health care among many other things,” Quade says.

While Quade has described the 99th House district as a “solid red district”, Evans has noted that former U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill (D) received more votes than Republican challenger Josh Hawley in that district in 2018.

Republicans currently control the Missouri House 114-48. Democrats won five of the six November House special elections. Four of the five seats they won are strong Democratic districts.

One key issue for Democrats is Medicaid expansion, an issue Gunby campaigned on. Quade says Democrats will also focus on growing gun violence.

Missouri lawmakers to tackle Medicaid expansion issue on Tuesday

October 7, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

A Missouri House subcommittee will hear testimony on the issue of Medicaid expansion Tuesday at the Statehouse in Jefferson City.

State Rep. Steve Helms, R-Springfield

The House Subcommittee on Health Care Reform will hold Tuesday’s hearing at 12:30.

Subcommittee chairman Steve Helms, R-Springfield, tells Missourinet his committee aim is to improve access to health care and make it more affordable for Missourians. Helms says the subcommittee is looking at ways to reduce costs for individuals.

Helms also tells Missourinet the subcommittee will issue a report to the full committee.

Medicaid expansion has primarily been a party-line issue in the Legislature, and Republicans currently control the House 113-43.

House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, opposes Medicaid expansion, saying it would take dollars out of the classroom. He notes it would require a ten percent match for the 90 percent draw down.

Speaker Haahr says Medicaid expansion “would blow a sizable hole in our general revenue budget,” because of the match.

Missouri House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield, briefs Capitol reporters on September 11, 2019, along with Assistant Minority Leader Tommie Pierson, D-St. Louis, and Minority Whip Keri Ingle, D-Lee’s Summit (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith, R-Carthage, shares Speaker Haahr’s position, because of the impact on the state budget.

House Democratic Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield, supports Medicaid expansion, saying 100,000 children have lost their Medicaid health care coverage. She says it’s an emergency.

Statistics provided by the state Department of Social Services (DSS) show the number of Missourians on Medicaid has decreased from 953,000 in August 2018 to 850,000 now.

State Rep. Deb Lavender, D-Kirkwood, predicts state revenue will increase, if Medicaid expansion happens. Lavender is the ranking Democrat on the House Subcommittee on Appropriations for Health, Mental Health and Social Services.

Lavender notes eight rural Missouri hospitals have closed in recent years.

Missouri’s Medicaid budget is now about one-third of the state’s approximately $29 billion operating budget.

MO House Speaker says VA problems support argument against Medicaid expansion (AUDIO)

June 20, 2014 By Mike Lear

The Republican Speaker of the Missouri House says recent problems with the Veterans Health Administration support the stance his caucus has taken against Medicaid expansion. Tim Jones (R-Eureka) has been opposed to using federal dollars to expand eligibility for that program in Missouri since Governor Jay Nixon (D) raised the issue in late 2012.

House Speaker Tim Jones (photo courtesy; Tim Bommel, Missouri House Communications)

He says issues that have come to light – veterans needing care being on secret waiting lists, some veterans dying while waiting for care, and records being falsified to reflect shorter wait times than actually experienced – illustrate the problems of having government-run a healthcare system.

“We actually look extremely smart and wise in not expanding Medicaid up to this point,” says Jones.

“The VA healthcare system, the federal Obamacare law and state Medicaid systems – the commonality is they’re all run by a form of the government,” says Jones. “The Medicaid system has now got the heavy hand of the federal government trying to use the carrot-and-stick approach of using the federal bill to expand the state systems.”

“We cannot put our heads in the sand and ignore potential similarities and analogies that can be drawn between the federal government running one massive national healthcare system on one hand versus another,” he adds.

Jones says Medicaid must be reformed rather than just have millions more in tax dollars be applied to the current system.

Medicaid expansion is an issue many Democrats running this year for state legislative seats will focus on.

AUDIO: Jones says running on Medicaid expansion in this year’s campaigns would be a mistake

Two House Republicans’ letter seeks to sway Nixon on transfer legislation

May 20, 2014 By Mike Lear

Two Republicans who have crossed party lines to work on Medicaid expansion say Governor Jay Nixon (D) needs to heed his own advice and work across lines to not veto the proposed transfer bill. They have written a letter to Nixon on the issue.

Representative Jay Barnes (R-Jefferson City) and Representative Noel Torpey (R-Independence) say Nixon has in more than one State of the State Address called for working across political, geographical and other lines to solve problems. Barnes says that’s what they’re asking him to do with the transfer bill.

“That’s exactly what happened with Senate Bill 493,” says Barnes. “You saw a bill that the Senate passed 29-3, the House passed it with a bipartisan majority of 89 votes – obviously a little bit closer – but this is a bill which required a lot of work, a lot of compromises all around.”

See Barnes’ and Torpey’s letter to Gov. Nixon

Torpey says the bill isn’t perfect, but he wants to work with Nixon in the interim and next session to address the problems the governor has with the bill rather than see it vetoed.

“Education is such a complicated issue like Medicaid. I think it’s important to work together and to go forward,” says Torpey, “but to simply just blow a bill up, I don’t think that’s the right approach.”

Nixon says he can’t support a bill that would allow tax dollars to go to private schools. Barnes says that would make him like “legislative absolutists,” who make progress on key issues impossible.

The pair write, “Instead of insisting on a bill which is “perfect” to you, we ask that you read the bill as a whole. If you do, we believe you will find that the private option is only a small portion of the bill – a portion we believe is vital and necessary, but a small one nonetheless.”

Barnes says Medicaid and the transfer bill are similar in that both will require compromise, but he and Torpey both say their letter is not to suggest that they won’t work with Nixon on Medicaid if he doesn’t do what they want on the student transfer bill.