Cassidy says Maine would win in Obamacare repeal. He hasn’t shown his data.

Bangor Daily News (ME)

Sept. 21--PORTLAND, Maine -- The architect of Republicans' latest bid to kill the Affordable Care Act said Wednesday that Maine and other states would see "billions" more under it, but he hasn't shown his data and it contradicts outside analyses.

It's unlikely to help the Graham-Cassidy bill, led by U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-Louisiana, get over the finish line: Maine Sen. Susan Collins looks primed to vote against it, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul already opposes it and a third Republican no vote would kill the bid.

On Wednesday, Cassidy told CNN that a group of states including Maine will see "billions more dollars" for coverage under the plan, which would eliminate subsidies for exchanges and a higher reimbursement rate for Medicaid expansion states and replace it with lower overall block grants.

But when the Bangor Daily News asked Cassidy's office in a Wednesday email to provide his figures, spokesman Ty Bofferding replied, "We are locking down the numbers now so I will send them to you once I have final numbers." He said Thursday that he's still working to finalize the numbers.

Estimates from outside groups haven't been kind to the Graham-Cassidy plan nationally. The nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation said Thursday that it would amount to a $160 billion cut nationally by 2026, with Maine in a unique position -- getting more funding than it does under the Affordable Care Act, but becoming a net loser due to Medicaid changes.

It estimated that Maine would see $4.2 billion in block grant funding, which is $325 million more than it gets in federal Affordable Care Act funding now. But Maine would lose $379 million due to a per-enrollee cap on Medicaid funding, amounting to a $54 million loss by 2026.

Those cuts would balloon if the block grant isn't extended in 2027. Assuming that, Kaiser placed Maine's loss at $745 million by then. The liberal Center on Budget and Policy Priorities estimated it at $1 billion.

Collins and fellow Republican Sens. John McCain of Arizona and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, killed the last repeal effort in July and the Maine senator told ABC News on Tuesday that she's "leaning no" on the bill. McCain and Murkowski also are undecided.

___

Visit the Bangor Daily News (Bangor, Maine) at www.bangordailynews.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.