RHINELANDER, WI (WSAU-WXPR) — A member of the budget-writing Joint Finance Committee says majority Republicans didn’t want to increase the federal government’s role in healthcare by expanding Medicaid.
Wisconsin remains one of 13 states not expanding Medicaid to more persons seeking medical insurance for lower-income residents. The committee stripped out Governor Evers request for the expansion as one of its first acts.
$350 million federal dollars would pay for the expansion, but State Senator Tom Tiffany of Hazelhurst tells WXPR Radio in Rhinelander, they feared the cost of more people on the program.
“80,000 more people would have to be covered. Half of those people already are covered by insurance. The other half are not. I think a better approach here is to get those people who are not covered currently to get to them and show them there are affordable options out there, rather than taking this expansion.”
Tiffany says the expansion would shift more costs onto private insurance companies because Medicaid does not pay full cost and the 40 percent shortage is made up by the private pay insurers who pass the cost on. He says other money has come into the system.
“We put in over $200 million dollars to help keep costs down. We should be working with those not finding insurance that there are options out there we can get for them. I think it’s important to educate people that there are affordable options out there. I think that would be a better approach rather than expanding the federal government’s role in our health care system.”
Democrats who back the expansion say for many people, especially those with pre-existing health issues, the options are limited, if available at all. Proponents say taking the money would lower costs in the private sector.
Governor Evers has said the expansion would free up more than $300 million dollars for other items in the budget.
