
Expanding medicaid for the state of Texas would only cost $2.5 billion dollars annually and could be offset by closing loopholes and reinstating previous tax cuts that cost the state budget roughly $5 billion annually.
Problem:
- 5 million Texans—nearly 1 of 5 residents—lacked health insurance in 2014
- Portable Health Savings Accounts are not a long term solution to creating a state or national universal healthcare system
- In some states childless adults cannot obtain Medicaid coverage
- The 1115 medicaid waiver is not a long term solution to healthcare and expires December 2017
- Not expanding medicaid denies healthcare to roughly 20,000 veterans living in Texas
- After Kentucky imposed work requirements for medicaid recipients the administrative costs for the healthcare program increased 40%
- Among all people with at least one medical bill in collections in 2016, 11% were 27-years-old — the largest share observed in this new study. That’s one year after children lose eligibility for a parent’s health insurance coverage under the Affordable Care Act
- Pregnant women on medicaid lose their health insurance 2 months after giving birth
Solutions:
- Close corporate loopholes in the commercial real estate appraisal system
- Finance a portion of the medicaid expansion with a state public bank
- Close corporate loopholes in the state sales tax
- Pay for medicaid expansion with a 0.15% increase in the sales tax while exempting groceries similar to Utah
- Pay for a portion of medicaid expansion with a head tax on cruise ships visiting Texas similar to Alaska
- Finance the state portion of the medicaid expansion with tax reform’s such as but not limited to: gas tax, revenue-neutral carbon tax, corporate income tax
- Allow U.S. based insurers and hmo’s to offer Texas-Mexico cross border health plans
- Strengthen and reform the state rainy day fund
- Reallocate some of the $800 million wasted on border security
- Pre trial reform could save the state of Texas roughly $100 to $200 million annually
- Allow individuals and companies in Texas to buy into medicaid (supported by George H Bush, being explored by New Mexico)
Huffington Post – This Is What Happens When Your State Government Blocks The Medicaid Expansion
Huffington Post – Another GOP Governor Calls For Obamacare Medicaid Expansion
Huffington Post – Perry-Appointed Board Backs Medicaid Expansion
Huffington Post – Texas And Florida Expand Medicaid — For Kids
PEW – State Health Care Spending on Medicaid
CPPP – Sizing Up the 2014 – 2015 Texas Budget: Medicaid and CHIP
CBPP – Medicaid Expansion’s New Cost Estimate Isn’t Alarming
Georgetown University Health Policy Institute – About CHIP
New York Times – Medicaid Pays Less Than Medicare for Many Prescription Drugs, U.S. Report Finds
New York Times – Why Not Medicaid For All?
New York Times – California Moves to Allow Undocumented Immigrants to Buy Insurance
Lexington Herald – Single-payer health care may emerge as best option
Mother Jones – Medicaid Expansion Is a Stealth Success, and That’s Just Fine
Salt Lake Tribune – Medicaid expansion — for poorest of the poor — may have traction on Capitol Hill
Houston Chronicle – Commissioner Radack says he will keep up drum beat for Medicaid funds
Kaiser Foundation – Will Louisiana’s Medicaid Expansion Be A Harbinger For Georgia?
Kaiser Foundation – Lack Of Medicaid Expansion Hurts Rural Hospitals More Than Urban Facilities
Kaiser Foundation – New Estimates of Eligibility for ACA Coverage among the Uninsured
Kaiser Foundation – Medicaid Expansion in New Hampshire
Kaiser Foundation – Five Key Questions And Answers About Section 1115 Medicaid Waivers
NPR – Louisiana Medicaid Expansion Brings Insurance To Many New Orleans Musicians
NPR – Texas Loses Billions To Treat The Poor By Not Expanding Medicaid, Advocates Say
NPR – New Hampshire Medicaid Expansion Overwhelmingly Passes Republican-Backed House
Texas Tribune – Texas, Feds Agree to Renew Short-Term Medicaid Funds
Texas Tribune – Key Texas Lawmakers Show Little Appetite for Medicaid Expansion
Texas Tribune – Texas Supreme Court Allows Medicaid Cuts to Children’s Therapy to Proceed
Albany Herald – EDITORIAL: Georgia should revisit Medicaid expansion
Las Cruces Sun – What’s really behind New Mexico’s budget woes
PBS – Medicaid expansion under Obamacare has improved financial health of low-income Americans
Commonwealth Fund – Childless Adults Face Hurdles Qualifying for Medicaid, Survey Shows
Commonwealth Fund – Medicaid Expansion in Texas: What’s at Stake?
Democracy Journal – The Case Against Medicaid Expansion Gets Even Weaker
Think Progress – Oklahoma GOP Does an About-Face on Medicaid Expansion
Study: Georgia’s refusal to expand Medicaid will leave $33.7 billion in federal cash on the table
Medicaid expansion would be financial windfall for Georgia, report says
Dallas Morning News – Texas braces for budget cuts as economy, Medicaid, spending decisions collide
Trib Talk – Don’t blame oil prices for budget woes
The Tennessean – Study heralds Medicaid expansion benefits as rural hospital closes
The Nation – ‘We Can’t Afford It’: The Big Lie About Medicaid Expansion
CBPP – Census Data Show States Not Expanding Medicaid Falling Further Behind
CBPP – How Health Reform’s Medicaid Expansion Will Impact State Budgets
Concord Monitor – GOP leaders call for continuation of Medicaid expansion
El Paso Times – Medicaid boost urged to add 1.2 million insured
Richmond Times -Hazel column: This year, Virginia, say yes to Medicaid expansion
Wyoming Public Radio – Governor Calls For Medicaid Expansion In His State Of The State Message
Wyoming Tribune Eagle – Simpson, Sullivan: “Old coots” should pass expansion
Governor Mead Asks Legislature to Reconsider Medicaid Expansion
USA Today – Health care giants promise another push for Medicaid expansion in 2017
Washington Times – Funding could make South Dakota Medicaid expansion easier
Valdosta Daily Times – State weighs Medicaid expansion
Louisiana gets innovative to catch up on Medicaid expansion: Editorial
Houston Free Press – Texas Will Accept a 15-Month Lifeline From the Feds, But Not Medicaid Expansion
Houston Free Press – Dan Patrick Threatens To Flush Federal Education Funding Down The Toilet
Slate – New York Medicaid May Soon Cover Donated Breast Milk for Preterm Babies
The Post and Courier – For Medicaid expansion in S.C., HHS secretary says it’s only a matter of time
The Bismarck Tribune – Burgum open to Medicaid expansion reauthorization
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