Utah's Republican Gov. Gary Herbert appears to have inched closer to securing a waiver from the Obama administration for Medicaid expansion this week, though details—and sign-off from the heavily Republican legislature—still need to be ironed out. The basic issue is a proposed work requirement the Republican lawmakers demand and which the administration would not approve. Herbert says that the administration has agreed to the concept that Medicaid recipients should work with the state to find work (ignoring the fact that many if not most of the newly eligible people are actually working their asses off in low-paying jobs) :
Read up folks. "The governor said after a meeting with Sylvia Burwell, secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, that a final agreement is two or three weeks away":
"So one more red state is at least lurching toward that evil, evil Obamacare, just as long as they can appropriately stigmatize the 111,000 people who need access as lazy bums that the state has to force into employment. The good news, though, is that one more red state is lurching toward doing the right thing by its people," DK contributorJoan McCarter wryly quips.
With a potential $719 million in Utah federal funding projected to be jeopardised over the next 8 years in the absence of Utah Medicaid expansion, we'll tentatively applaud Governor Herbert's diligent and dogged efforts to negotiate an acceptable deal with the Department of Health and Human Services, and additionally "strongly urge" our crackpot legislature to "choose the right [wink]" for "health care challenged" Utah lumpencitizens.
"Never look a gift horse in the mouth," as the old saying goes, right?
Update 5/12/14 8:00 a.m.: The Salt Lake Tribune follows up yesterday's story with this morning's strong editorial:
"So one more red state is at least lurching toward that evil, evil Obamacare, just as long as they can appropriately stigmatize the 111,000 people who need access as lazy bums that the state has to force into employment. The good news, though, is that one more red state is lurching toward doing the right thing by its people," DK contributorJoan McCarter wryly quips.
With a potential $719 million in Utah federal funding projected to be jeopardised over the next 8 years in the absence of Utah Medicaid expansion, we'll tentatively applaud Governor Herbert's diligent and dogged efforts to negotiate an acceptable deal with the Department of Health and Human Services, and additionally "strongly urge" our crackpot legislature to "choose the right [wink]" for "health care challenged" Utah lumpencitizens.
"Never look a gift horse in the mouth," as the old saying goes, right?
Update 5/12/14 8:00 a.m.: The Salt Lake Tribune follows up yesterday's story with this morning's strong editorial:
