Expanding Medicaid Is a Bad Way to Provide Health Care. Here’s Why.

Oct 4, 2018 by AFP

This fall, Nebraskans will be asked if they want to expand Medicaid to more recipients. The answer to that question should be a resounding no.

Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion does more harm than good. Every state that has expanded Medicaid has put an undue burden on taxpayers. Enrollment in the programs is always higher than expected, meaning taxpayers are on the hook when states run out of money to fund Medicaid.

That’s especially bad for Nebraskans. The Cornhusker State has thetwelfth highest state and local property taxes in the country. If Medicaid is expanded to include working-age, able-bodied adults, Medicaid funding will inevitably run out and lawmakers will turn to hiking taxes even higher to make up the difference.

But the problem isn’t just feasibility. Expanding Medicaid hurts those who truly need the program and benefits insurance companies and providers. Researchers from Harvard, Dartmouth and MIT reported that Medicaid recipients receive about 20 to 40 cents of every Medicaid dollar spent.

What’s more, expanding the pool of Medicaid recipients to able-bodied, childless, working-age adults crowds out the most vulnerable Nebraskans who are then left with less access to health care because the pool of recipients is just too large.

Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion is just a bad idea all around. Giving someone a Medicaid card isn’t the same as giving them access to high-quality, affordable care. In fact, expanding Medicaid props up a broken program than remove unnecessary regulations on the health care industry.

Nebraska has alternatives to Medicaid expansion if it wants to increase access and lower the cost of health care. It can start by removing outdated scope-of-practice restrictions and increasing direct primary care that would give Nebraskans more options when seeking health care.

Removing barriers to accessing health care is the answer to providing quality, affordable care, not Medicaid expansion. Learn more by visiting our website nomedicaidexpansion.com and remember to vote “NO” to Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion in November!