Legislators expect some form of Medicaid expansion
A bill addressing Medicaid expansion was actually heard in a
State Rep.
"We have to do this," said Meredith. "We take federal dollars for our roads and bridges, we take federal dollars for our schools; we need to take these federal dollars. We don't need to raise any taxes or have any revenue raisers. We had the money to do it this year and we chose not to do it."
The state's ability to expand Medicaid comes from the federal Affordable Care Act. State Sen.
"So the
Gov.
"He already has a plan that's he's presented to the
Pemberton added that both he and Meredith expect Medicaid expansion to be a hot topic next session. The conversation appears to have gained urgency, though, as the group
"I know that the AG's office has set the dates for the signatures," said Meredith. "The people who are wanting the bill to be put on the ballot have 90 days to collect the signatures. If they do that, it gets to go on the ballot. I believe wholeheartedly that if it goes to the ballot, it passes. Everyday Oklahomans agree, and it polls very high. We've neglected Oklahomans for years, and years, and years at the expense of big corporations, and it's time we take care of Oklahomans."
If state lawmakers were to propose legislation to accept the
"Let's say we do a bill that accepts and draws down those dollars, and the ballot issue already has signatures and it's put on the ballot. How would that affect each other?" said Pemberton. "No one seems to know the answer."
Pemberton said if the measure is placed on the ballot and it passes, it would mean a chance to the state constitution, and "you can't overrule a constitutional change by legislation." He also said the state may attempt to put certain "parameters" on the ballot measure contingent upon its passing.
He said many don't want to see the ballot to pass and it become a "free-for-all like we had with the medical marijuana."
"The ballot measure was so open that it really was not regulated very well," said Pemberton. "This last year, I think we passed 10 or 12 bills trying to whittle it back down to an organized medical marijuana legislation that we could get our heads around. These ballot measures sometimes are short and they don't take into account all of the nuances, the issues, and all of the things that are going to come into play. It requires dozens of bills and legislation to clean stuff up. We may try to clean it up beforehand so we have a functional system before it actually hits the ballot."
A query to Young Republican Chair
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