The major roadblock to Medicaid expansion in the Mississippi Legislature is Speaker of the House Philip Gunn.
The Speaker has said he bases his position on two things – potential costs to Mississippi taxpayers and his personal aversion to expansive government.
“All it takes is the federal government deciding they’re not going to pay for it anymore and then it falls on the backs of the Mississippi taxpayer,” Gunn said on the Paul Gallo radio show.
“I’ve always maintained, to the extent that we can, decreased government dependency should be the goal,” he added. “Expansion in my view is going in the opposite direction.”
With 38 states having expanded Medicaid, there is little chance the federal government will back out – about as likely as backing out of farm subsidies. The state economist and others have shown expanding Medicaid would more than pay for itself. Plus hospitals have offered a way for them to provide insurance and cover expansion costs. So, the cost concern has been pretty well debunked.
That leaves Gunn’s personal political beliefs as the apparently insurmountable barrier. Now, the Speaker is no dummy, but that position is nonsensical for a Mississippi leader.
First, Mississippi and its people have been going in the opposite direction so long we are addicted to federal money and there is no turning back. The Speaker well knows state government depends on federal dollars, he appropriates billions every year. He also knows how much businesses and individuals depend upon farm subsidies and price supports, transportation grants, defense establishments and contracts, Department of Labor funds and grants, Title 1 and Title 3 education grants, Pell grants, university research grants, SNAP, TANF, federal unemployment insurance, community development block grants, EDA grants and low interest loans, USDA Rural Development grants and loans, ARC and DRA grants, Earned Income Tax Credits, Child Care Tax Credits, Social Security, and innumerable other programs.
Plus, approximately 53% of Mississippians already gets government funded or subsidized health insurance through Medicaid, Medicare, ACA market place subsidies, the military, and government employment. Only about 33% of Mississippians get coverage from private sector employers. A few thousand buy non-subsidized policies directly from insurance companies.
That leaves 14%, primarily the working poor who cannot afford insurance.
Second, the Speaker should realize, as former Ohio Gov. John Kasich did, that taking care of the poor is a core conservative value, one supported by Ronald Reagan who approved legislation adding poor children and pregnant women to Medicaid in 1986.
Third, the federal government already did the expanding to cover the working poor.
The Speaker may not like our heavy dependency on the federal government, but standing tall for his personal political beliefs on the backs of the hard-working poor is just blowing against the wind. He should adopt Kasich’s view – “It is in the conservative tradition to make sure we help people get on their feet so they then are not dependent.”
“Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord” – Proverbs 19:17.
Crawford is a syndicated columnist from Jackson.
24 comments:
FACT: John Kasich is a RINO who supported and supports Joe Biden. Nice try Crawford.
The Speaker is as entitled to his view as you are to yours, Bill.
Mississippi should ALWAYS elect Democrats to federal office to maximize our federal dollars. We get to steal from states like California and New York. Let’s maximize that.
Democrats quoting scripture is comical and sad. Bless.
Amen, also “suffer little children to come to me…such is the kingdom of God.” Matt 19:14.
Gotta love how Mr Crawford cherry picks scripture and loves to be kind to the poor with other peoples' money...
Preach
Don't you love it when marxists conveniently pretzel a Bible verse to support their evil?
Proverbs does not direct big government to steal from our hard working middle class to develop dependency-voters among the non-productive with transfer payments.
“Plus, approximately 53% of Mississippians already gets government funded or subsidized health insurance through Medicaid, Medicare, ACA market place subsidies, the military, and government employment.”
If you can’t make it with that, continuing to hand out free cash won’t improve outcomes or peoples lives.
Enough is enough Billy. Enough free handouts.
Stop taking money from ME and redistributing it to others.
Well said. And I am certainly not a liberal Democrat. Plus how much in unpaid medical expenses from non paying patients at county hospitals, UMMC, etc. already gets passed on to paying/insured patients through higher charges and insurance premiums?
Republicans are “Christian” when it suits them.
It is nonsensical public policy to not allow all people healthcare. It is also a commandment that all Christians do all one can do to serve the poor. With the power the Speaker holds, as a Christian he should be fearful of denying the poor.
"He also knows how much businesses and individuals depend upon farm subsidies and price supports, transportation grants, defense establishments and contracts, Department of Labor funds and grants, Title 1 and Title 3 education grants, Pell grants, university research grants, SNAP, TANF, federal unemployment insurance, community development block grants, EDA grants and low interest loans, USDA Rural Development grants and loans, ARC and DRA grants, Earned Income Tax Credits, Child Care Tax Credits, Social Security, and innumerable other programs"
But, Bill, all these folks are "self made!!!"
They might be touring Europe after taking PPP millions and Restaurant Welfare money, and Farm Welfare, and grabbing Tax Dodges after earning millions on Subsidized Farms, and are hollering for GubMint bought Pumps and GubMint subsidized Swamp Developments and are getting "refunds" on their FIT when they paid ZERO FIT, but these bidnessmen and "mah taxes is too high" types definitely DON'T know they live off the GubMint teat here.
As hypocritical as a Coach preaching against NILs just as his son's is coming out.
The "self made" men who inherited stuff going back to slave times or who gained NFL syndicate riches are all "self made" and, oh so humble.
Yeah.
This asshole however doesn't mind hundreds of millions in federal financial aid money sloshing through "higher education" and going to fat cat administrators - does he? No he loves keeping that ocean of money washing through their foundations and coming out clean for various pork projects.
Philip Gunn = White Supremacy
Crawford: "... as former Ohio Gov. John Kasich did ..."
Manufacturing a Medicaid Crisis | How Ohio Mismanaged its Way into a Disaster
In 2000, Ohio was spending $7.4 billion on Medicaid. Today, that figure has increased to nearly $32 billion—a 332 percent increase.
Most of this change can be directly attributed to the state’s [Kasich's] decision to expand Medicaid under ObamaCare in 2014. Before expansion was implemented in Ohio, state officials promised enrollment would cap out at 447,000 by 2020. By 2020, enrollment had reached nearly 750,000. And today, enrollment in the state’s expansion population of able-bodied adults stands at more than 850,000— roughly 90 percent above initial state estimates.
It is unsurprising that in 2000, Medicaid consumed less than 20 percent of Ohio’s budget. Today, it accounts for 39.3 percent of Ohio’s expenditures—more than any other state in the nation.
Bill Crawford is full of crapola.
Gunn's concerns are totally justified.
Ohio's Budget bludgeoned by Medicaid Expansion
Democrats “care” till it affects their wallets.
Ole Billy has never seen a government program he doesn't like. He might be most arrogant, pious punk I know of.
I thought Bill had left the payroll of the MS Hospital Association; guess he just took 'of counsel' position since he constinues to carry their water and toot their favorite horn.
Using the statistic that 53% of Mississippians receive their healthcare 'from' the federal government is a ridiculous argument when he includes the 40% who receive Medicaid - an insurance program that we paid for over forty years and continue to pay for while we receive it. The fact that it is a federal program, thus we should expand another federal program is nothing but good socialistic policy. I paid for my Medicare and if had been given a choice, I would have not participated; I would be purchasing my own insurance - just as i do for my house, my car, and my life. But Bill's favorite mama, the federal government, required me to pay for Medicare and thus it covers me now.
We are long past the "eventually you run out of other people's money." Now the money comes from the printing presses.
Hang in there, Gunn!
October 23, 2022 at 8:38 AM Correction: John Kasich is a TRUE REPUBLICAN, as am I. There is no such thing as a RINO. You people who are taking over the GOP should just form your own Trump party.
What's really comical to watch year after year is a large majority of the house members sucking up to Gunn as if he's Jim Jones in a purple robe. He has the power to dish out little gift assignments and he has the power to erase your district. Nice job to have if you're really into narcissistic, egomaniacal behavior. He covets a following and really gets off on the adoration. And that adoration comes from both sexes, all ages, all walks of life for a four-month period every year.
If this is going to be a Christian nation that doesn't help the poor, either we've got to pretend that Jesus was just as selfish as we are, or we've got to acknowledge that he commanded us to love the poor and serve the needy without condition, and then admit that we just don't want to do it.
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