GA Medicaid expansion proposals
Last week I commented on the various options for expanding Medicaid in Georgia and drew comments from a number of readers. Now it seems like a Forbes contributor has taken a closer look at those options and come to some scathing conclusions.
Josh Archambault, Senior Fellow with the Foundation for Government Accountability, has joined the conversation with some pretty stark analysis of the sketchy outline of Medicaid expansion now on the table.
The “Georgia Way” Would Steal Resources From The Truly Needy.
The Chamber’s Plan Would Replicate Arkansas & Iowa’s ‘Innovative’ Failures.
Expansion Costs Would Be Unpredictable.
The “Georgia Way” Should Go Away.
Read the background on these conclusions, draw your own conclusions and then join the discussion on how best to serve both Georgia patients and Georgia taxpayers.
Add a Comment
You must be logged in to post a comment.
The Forbes piece is basically a hit job by a couple DC conservatives with an anti-Medicaid axe to grind. They’re certainly free to think and voice whatever they want, but I think framing their argument as taking a “closer look” and coming to “scathing conclusions” is a bit misleading. It’s not a GAO or CBO report or something. That’s kind of like saying DailyKos or MoveOn took a close look at this issue and came to a scathing conclusion.
yeah, this piece was not very logical, and imo deceptive. it states: individuals “with critical needs are stuck on waiting lists for services. Meanwhile, funding that could go to help the truly needy is being diverted to provide Obamacare expansion benefits.” but: if you want to help the truly needy, all you have to do is restate/ reapportion medicaid benefits, as in fund the waivers so there is no waiting list. you could do that without the new ACA dollars. it could probly be easier with the new money. but you have to make it the priority, which, tbh, it has never really been. the ACA generally provides more options for the coverage of folks living w disabilities.
I’ve noticed the twitter activity from FGA, which looks to be quite closely associated with the well respected Illinois Policy Foundation. (A lot of retweeting of each other).
So, while Illinois has accepted expanded Medicaid, these guys want to make sure Georgia keeps paying into the system that their citizens take advantage of, but doesn’t want Georgia to because it would increase the National debt. That seems fair.
The four line summary of the link omitted an important characterization: three references each to “welfare” and “able-bodied adults” in its mere 462 words. The GOP and its think tanks worked long and diligently to tune the dog whistle. They don’t want its effectiveness diminished from lack of use just because Trump isn’t using it.
The GaGOP can’t govern without the Chamber despite its two-thirds majority, as was demonstrated with highway funding, and will be demonstrated with healthcare.