Here’s what you should know.
1. An amendment to the proposed state budget would roll-back Medicaid expansion in the state. Eliminating the expansion would save $7.8 million in funding from the multibillion dollar program, The Dispatch reports.
If passed, the bill would freeze enrollment in Medicaid expansion, current beneficiaries would keep their coverage, but no one else could enroll into the program.
2. Rep. Wesley Goodman, R-Cardington, said the state needs “to do something to arrest Medicaid spending before it overtakes our budget. … Every dollar spent on this population, which is made up of able-bodied childless adults, is one less we have to spend on the truly needy,” according to The Dispatch.
3. Analysts throughout the state are critical of the amendment. Julie DiRossi-King, director of policy and government affairs for the Ohio Association of Community Health Centers, believes the measure will drastically limit access to care.
4. The state recently unveiled a $170.6 million plan to fight a rising opioid problem. Analysts believe this amendment could counteract that.
“As we’re looking for ways to combat our opioid epidemic, it feels counterintuitive to freeze coverage for those who are seeking treatment,” Ms. DiRossi-King said to the Dispatch.
5. House Republicans are also considering implementing a work requirement for select populations.
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