Most local candidates endorse Medicaid expansion in Idaho

Nov. 03--Idaho 5th District Senator hopeful David Nelson, D-Moscow, said Proposition 2 is the defining issue in this year's election.

Reclaim Idaho, a grassroots movement that focuses on strengthening public schools, protecting public lands and extending health care to working families, organized a successful statewide petition drive to put Medicaid expansion on the Nov. 6 ballot.

If it passes, Idahoans at up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level can enroll in the Medicaid program.

Idaho gubernatorial candidate Paulette Jordan, D-Plummer, said she voted for Medicaid expansion, while her opponent, Brad Little, R-Emmett, did not disclose whether he voted for it, but did say he would adhere to the will of the people on the issue.

Jordan said she has advocated for Medicaid expansion since the beginning, adding the health care change will benefit the state and its residents.

"This is where we can impact our community really wholesomely because we're able to now bring our own resources back into our state and then reinvest back into our communities," Jordan said.

She said if Proposition 2 passes, it will help support mental health and drug abuse programs, rural hospitals and medical clinics.

Little said the state needs to address the roughly 60,000 people in the gap, but he prefers the dual waiver bill that was suggested last year.

The bill would have allowed those in the Medicaid gap to purchase health insurance using subsidies and pushed people with private insurance onto Medicaid.

As for the local Idaho 5th District candidates, four of the six endorse the proposition.

Margie Gannon, D-St. Maries, the incumbent running for the state 5A position in the Idaho House of Representatives, said many hospitals rely on reimbursements from insurers and Medicaid to fund operations. She noted while Idaho has opted out of proposed Medicaid expansion allowed under the Affordable Care Act, the state still pays into the program and spends vast sums on urgent care for uninsured residents.

"This is money that's being taken out of my taxes -- yours as well -- every year for our federal taxes," Gannon said. "How about we bring some of that back and we use it right here in Idaho to help 62,000 people that may be friends, neighbors or relatives?"

Gannon's opponent Bill Goesling, R-Moscow, said he is especially concerned about the 3,900 veterans who fall in the Medicaid gap.

"A healthy workforce provides a healthy economy," Goesling said. "People can get their primary care up front, which is lower cost versus that high cost at the emergency room, which is the only place they can go anymore if they have an acute injury or an illness."

Caroline Nilsson Troy, R-Genesee, the incumbent running for the state 5B position in the House, said she probably will not vote for the initiative but will support it if Idaho voters pass it.

"I personally have not thought straight Medicaid expansion was a good idea," she said. "I think there are better ways to address these folks in the gap population."

Like Little, she said last year's dual waiver bill was a great suggestion.

Nilsson Troy's opponent, Laurene Sorensen, D-Moscow, said she will vote for the proposition, which, if passed, would significantly reduce the need to pay for indigent care from local property taxes and catastrophic care from state taxes. Similar to Goesling, she said those without health insurance cannot seek preventative care, which can result in serious health issues and higher medical bills when they are forced to seek treatment.

"This is our money," Sorensen said. "We've contributed from it out of all of our paychecks."

Nelson, who is running against Sen. Dan Foreman, R-Viola, said he already voted for the proposition. He said not only will it help the roughly 60,000 people in the gap, the initiative would bring back $400 million a year in the state's federal taxes.

"It really gripes me about the financially unconservative nature of our Legislature to refuse that money to come back and fund Medicaid in our state," Nelson said.

A news release issued Wednesday by Sen. Steven Thayn, R-Emmett, on behalf of himself and eight other Idaho state senators, including Foreman, stated that the proposition would have many negative consequences if it passed. The senators said expanding the federal program could lead to a fiscal catastrophe for current and future Idahoans.

"Despite the assurances of Prop 2 backers, the fact is we don't know how much this Medicaid expansion will end up costing, or how many people it will end up covering," Thayn said in the release.

He said the negative impacts of Medicaid expansion could be felt for years to come.

"As the costs mount, Idaho taxpayers will be left holding the bag," he said. "We would have to cut funding for other important areas such as education. And with the federal government already $21 trillion in debt, we can't expect Uncle Sam to help us. We'd be on our own."

Foreman was unable to be reached for comment on this story.

Former 5th District Sen. Dan Schmidt said at a League of Women Voters of Moscow forum in September that the ballot initiative especially makes sense for Idaho since the Gem State is the only state in the nation that has catastrophic and indigent coverage. He said Idaho taxpayers are already spending money on the uninsured through the catastrophic and indigent funds.

Schmidt said uninsured residents in other states are cared for medically, but the costs are shifted to the insured. He said Idaho has fairly low insurance rates compared to other states, partly because Idaho taxpayers are paying for the uninsured through catastrophic and indigent care.

"That is why the financial benefit to Idaho is much clearer than in other states," Schmidt said. "We're already paying for it straight out of the taxpayer's dollar."

Emily Strizich, a Reclaim Idaho co-founder, said a study by the Idaho Center for Fiscal Policy shows expanding Medicaid could save the state $15 million per year through savings to the state catastrophic and county indigent funds.

Garrett Cabeza can be reached at (208) 883-4631, or by email to gcabeza@dnews.com.

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