Advocates for Medicaid Expansion Are Now 6 for 6 in Statewide Votes to Expand the Program Since Trump Took Office
Yesterday, Missouri voters passed a ballot measure to expand Medicaid in the state, becoming the second red state to approve expansion during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The Show Me State made health care access a reality for more than 230,000 Missourians, in addition to many who lost health care coverage during the pandemic. Despite Missouri being a deep red state, voters chose to expand Medicaid and reject President Trump’s repeated attempts to undermine the Affordable Care Act, leaving Republicans 0-6 when Medicaid expansion is on the ballot and voters are given the chance to expand access to health care in their states.
HEADLINES
Forbes: Medicaid Expansion Wins In Red State Missouri
The Kansas City Star: Missouri Votes to Expand Medicaid Over Objections of State’s Republican Leaders
The Hill: Missouri Votes for Medicaid Expansion Over GOP Governor’s Objections
Vox: Missouri Approves Medicaid Expansion Ballot Initiative, Extending Coverage to 200,000 People
Extended coverage of Missouri’s vote to approve Medicaid expansion:
Forbes: Medicaid Expansion Wins In Red State Missouri. “The Missouri effort to become the 38th state to expand Medicaid is just the latest momentum in Republican-leaning states where lawmakers and governors have historically blocked efforts to expand health insurance coverage to more poor Americans under the ACA…the effort to expand Medicaid in Missouri to an estimated 217,000 to people in the state comes as cases of the coronavirus strain Covid-19 surge and thousands in the state are losing their jobs and healthcare coverage. Medicaid expansion is expected to enable more Missourians to become eligible for such health coverage as unemployment rises and people lose their employer-based health benefits.” [Forbes, 8/5/20]
The Kansas City Star: Missouri Votes to Expand Medicaid Over Objections of State’s Republican Leaders. “Missouri became the 38th state to expand Medicaid eligibility on Tuesday, with voters shrugging off Republican opposition to narrowly approve a constitutional amendment providing health coverage to more than 200,000 uninsured Missourians…Republicans have blocked Medicaid expansion in Missouri for years, which created a coverage gap where more than 200,000 Missourians earn too much to qualify for Medicaid but too little for subsidies to offset the cost of private insurance through the federal Affordable Care Act, more commonly known as Obamacare.” [The Kansas City Star, 8/4/20]
Politico: Missouri Voters Latest to Approve Medicaid Expansion. “A winning streak: Missouri becomes the sixth Republican-led state where voters have defied GOP leaders to expand Medicaid, just weeks after Oklahoma voters narrowly backed the program. No state has ever voted down such a ballot initiative in recent years, underscoring the popularity of Medicaid expansion even in parts of the country hostile to Obamacare. The Missouri vote came as the state has faced one of the sharpest increases in coronavirus infections and now reports on average over 1,200 daily new cases, almost three times more than a month ago.” [Politico, 8/5/20]
Vox: Missouri Approves Medicaid Expansion Ballot Initiative, Extending Coverage to 200,000 People. “The vote passed over the objections of Missouri’s Republican governor, Mike Parson, and conservative interest groups. Bills had been introduced in previous legislative sessions that would have expanded Medicaid, but they were ignored by the GOP majority. This makes Missouri the 39th state to expand Medicaid through Obamacare; all the holdouts have been driven by GOP opposition to the 2010 health care law.” [Vox, 8/5/20]
The Hill: Missouri Votes for Medicaid Expansion Over GOP Governor’s Objections. “Voters in deep-red Missouri narrowly approved Medicaid expansion on Tuesday over the objections of Republican state leaders. The vote makes Missouri the 38th state to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, and the sixth state in three years to pass it by ballot measure, a blow to the Trump administration’s anti-ObamaCare agenda…The state is solidly conservative, as President Trump won 57 percent of the vote in 2016. Republicans, who have supermajorities in both the state House and Senate, were opposed to the measure, as was Gov. Mike Parson (R) who is up for re-election.” [The Hill, 8/5/20]
Axios: Missouri Voters Approve Medicaid Expansion. “Some 230,000 Missourians will benefit from the measure, which marks the sixth time voters have gone against a resistant Republican-led Legislature, Politico notes. It’s the 38th state to back the expansion under former President Obama’s signature health care law, AP notes. It comes amid the backdrop of a pandemic that’s seen over 54,000 cases and more than 1,200 deaths from COVID-19 in Missouri.” [Axios, 8/5/20]
Associated Press: Missouri Approves Medicaid Expansion; Parson, Galloway Win. “Voters on Tuesday made Missouri the 38th state to approve expanding Medicaid health care coverage to thousands more low-income adults. Support for the constitutional amendment means that as many as 250,000 more adults could choose to be covered by government health insurance beginning in July 2021, according to estimates from the state auditor…The vote on health care, which was paired with Missouri’s primary elections, came as confirmed coronavirus case s have been rising in the state and the economy continues to suffer.” [Associated Press, 8/5/20]
St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Missouri Voters Narrowly Approve Medicaid Expansion. “Ignoring pleas from Republican leaders, Missouri voters approved a plan Tuesday to expand Medicaid coverage to more than 230,000 low-income people in the state. Missouri voted to expand its Medicaid program, as 53% of voters supported the measure. Missouri now joins 37 other states that have already expanded the federally subsidized health insurance program.” [St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 8/5/20]