Letter: Fighting cancer is tough enough
Cancer hasn’t stopped. So neither have we. Every year, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network brings cancer survivors and advocates to the state capitol to let lawmakers know that preventing suffering and death from cancer must be a top priority. Although we could not attend in person this year, my fellow advocates and I held a virtual day of action where we called on lawmakers to make fighting cancer a top priority.
We asked lawmakers to oppose legislation that would impose work requirements for Medicaid and make other changes to eligibility. Maintaining access to quality, affordable, accessible and comprehensive health care coverage and services is a matter of life and survivorship for thousands of low-income cancer patients and survivors.
JEFFERSON CITY - Governor Mike Parson halted Medicaid expansion Thursday, and now the battle for it could go to the courts.
Missouri voters approved Amendment 2 in August, which added Medicaid expansion to the state Constitution. Under the expansion, the federal government would cover 90% of the costs and the state would cover the other 10%.
However, the Missouri House and Senate voted down funding for Medicaid expansion in the 2022 budget. Gov. Parson then took the final step Thursday morning and sent a letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services withdrawing plans to fund it.
Medicaid expansion is set to start July 1, but University of Missouri law professor Thomas Bennett said that date could be up in the air with possible lawsuits.
KCUR Rev. Vernon Howard, president of the Kansas City chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, urged Missouri Medicaid expansion supporters to continue to fight.
Medicaid expansion supporters say Republicans refusal to implement the constitutional amendment will result in delays of health care for Missourians in need.
A day after Missouri Gov. Mike Parson declined to implement a voter approved constitutional amendment to expand the state’s public health insurance program, myriad supporters of the plan vowed to keep up the fight.
In Kansas City and across the state, health care advocacy groups gathered to express support for expanding Medicaid, which had been slated to begin on July 1 and provide health care coverage to an additional 271,000 Missouri residents.
Governor says no to expanding Medicaid without funding
ABC17 News
Voter-approved plans to expand access to Medicaid in Missouri won t move forward.
According to Governor Mike Parson s office, the Missouri Department of Social Services (DSS) submitted a letter Thursday morning to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid to withdraw its State Plan Amendments for MO HealthNet expansion.
MO HealthNet is the state s Medicaid program.
State lawmakers didn t include funding for the proposed expansion when the General Assembly completed Missouri s fiscal year 2022 budget last Friday.
The governor s office said the state s constitution prevents ballot initiatives from appropriating funds without creating a revenue source.
Lack of Missouri Medicaid expansion creates uncertainty for state, patients abc17news.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from abc17news.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.