Medicaid expansion campaign turns in 313,000 signatures, breaks record

Oct. 24--Supporters of expanding Medicaid to cover roughly 200,000 more low-income Oklahomans turned in 313,677 signatures to put the measure to a statewide vote in 2020.

The number of signatures gathered far exceeds the 178,000 signatures the campaign needs to qualify the measure for the ballot and exceeds the number of signatures turned in for any other initiative petition in state history.

Supporters of the initiative petition, which would be State Question 802 if it qualifies for the ballot, gathered at the secretary of state's office Thursday to turn in signatures.

"We are here to send a mandate that we are ready for Oklahomans to decide this issue at the ballot box," Yes on 802 campaign manager Amber England said.

As supporters carried boxes of signatures into the secretary of state's office, they chanted, "Tell me what democracy looks like. This is what democracy looks like."

Medicaid expansion supporter Erin Taylor said her family would have gone bankrupt if they didn't have Medicaid as secondary insurance for her son, Henry, who was born with a complex congenital heart condition. He has had to undergo numerous, expensive open-heart surgeries throughout his life, she said.

"It's overwhelming to see the compassion Oklahomans have for others that also need Medicaid coverage," Taylor said.

"I think that we have every reason to believe that people are going to come out and vote for this and this is going to pass because Oklahoma families have common sense about the financial impact this will have. We're saving jobs and quite honestly, we're saving lives."

The Yes on 802 campaign announced on Oct. 10 it hit its signatures goal but supporters of the measure continued collecting signatures to serve as a cushion in case of a legal challenge.

The Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs challenged the petition when it was filed, but president Jonathan Small has not said whether OCPA will challenge the signatures.

"Medicaid expansion only promises to generate the same poor health outcomes at a much higher taxpayer cost that forces the diversion of funds from schools and roads, tax increases, or both," he said. "As Oklahomans learn these facts, and of the existence of fiscally responsible alternatives, I am confident they will reject this fatally flawed proposal, just as they have similar ballot initiatives put forth by liberal activists in recent years."

The proposed state question would amend Oklahoma's constitution to expand Medicaid to cover adults under age 65 whose income does not exceed 133% of the federal poverty level.

Critics of Medicaid expansion oppose the joint federal-state program based on concerns that the federal government might reduce its match rate, leaving states on the hook for costs they didn't anticipate.

The federal government covers 90% of expansion costs. The state pays the remaining 10%.

Expansion critics also have concerns that extending health coverage to more people could strain the state's budget if far more people than estimated sign up.

Conservative-leaning states that have expanded Medicaid have shied away from straight Medicaid expansion, which is what is called for in State Question 802. Instead, Republicans in other states have supported Medicaid expansion plans have added work requirements for new Medicaid recipients or require beneficiaries to make nominal contributions to their care.

Gov. Kevin Stitt, who opposes the initiative petition, is working to craft a health care plan to rival the state question. Members of Oklahoma's Republican-controlled Legislature are doing the same. Neither group has unveiled details of their plans, which may include some form of Medicaid expansion.

The state's elected officials intend to have a fully formed plan to push through the Legislature in 2020.

Now, the question is up to Oklahoma residents because they have waited too long for the state's elected officials to take action, England said.

"We've all waited for nearly a decade for this Legislature and past Legislatures to act on this issue and they have continued to kick the can down the road," she said. "We can't wait any longer."

In the coming days, the secretary of state's office will count and verify the signatures. Then there will be a 10-day period in which opponents of the measure can challenge the validity of the signatures.

If State Question 802 clears those hurdles, it will go on the ballot next year.

Stitt will decide when the state question comes up for a vote.

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