Medicaid “Free Lunch” Nauseates Lawmakers

Following news that Gov. Corbett was going to meet with U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius, and rumors he might reverse his opposition to expanding Medicaid in Pennsylvania, a number of state legislators wrote to Corbett, emphasizing the problems with growing government health insurance.  The lawmakers’ letter states:

Federal promises to defray costs of the expansion after that are dubious at best, especially considering the condition of the federal government’s finances…

Regardless of one’s capacity to suspend reality and believe the federal government’s promise to make the payments, the money to pay for all of this still comes out of the same pocket, the taxpayer’s.

We again congratulate Governor Corbett on his decision to reject the ill-advised Medicaid expansion and encourage him to remain strong.

Legislative approval is key—in fact, while Florida Governor Rick Scott said his state would accept the Medicaid expansion, a Florida House committee voted to reject the expansion today.

There are several reasons why expanding Medicaid and implementing Obamacare is bad for Pennsylvania—several of which we discussed in a recent commentary, along with a prior blog post.  And despite what supporters claim, increased spending on government health insurance doesn’t create jobs, does not mean doctors will see patients, and isn’t compassionate.