The states are being sold another bill of medical goods with the pressure to expand Medicaid. It's a wonder why our state would sign up in effect to expand the Affordable Care Act thru the back door of false reasoning for expanding Medicaid. It begins with pretending that a limited program for a limited group of people that the States and Federal agencies teamed up to provide can even afford to be expanded without more charitable or tax money being collected to fund it. Medicaid will be even more controlled and cost prohibited if expanded.
More people, less money, less ability of providers to take the hit for administration and expansion money for services. Doctors in small clinics and rural hospitals can't afford to treat Medicaid patients as it forces more of the population into this antiquated program. Also, when has the federal government and its programs ever done what they promised? Do we want more government theory to run our medical treatments? Medicaid expansion loses its ability to help uninsurable, chronically ill patients when they have to compete for limited services with expanded coverage for more people who may not meet the fundamental goal of the program to be a safety net for disabled, handicapped, or critically ill patients who are unable to work or even find coverage with other insurance programs.
The bottom line is legislators are duped by federal dollars coming into the state, so they want to promote the hype of hope for free medical coverage when facts know there is no financial free ride for healthcare. Another essential point to mention is that the federal government has been a devastating influence on medical care, as have any socialized medical programs worldwide.