February 18, 2021
Tennessee is likely to reject hundreds of millions of dollars President Joe Biden is offering states to expand Medicaid as part of his $1.3 trillion COVID-19 relief package, even though hundreds of thousands of people remain without healthcare coverage.
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Democrats have been urging the state s top Republican leaders for years to accept the federal government s funds to increase TennCare coverage to 300,000-plus uninsured and underinsured residents caught in a gap between the state s Medicaid plan and the Affordable Care Act. Some estimates put the figure at 600,000.
Tennessee, one of 12 states holding out on Medicaid expansion since the Affordable Care Act passed, could receive $1.7 billion to provide insurance for the working poor and more money to cover the people already on TennCare, according to an analysis by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a left-leaning organization.
Larry Grooms believes that “abortion is denying the right to life to many South Carolinians.” The Republican state senator, who has been in office since 1997, has introduced a bill to restrict abortion access nearly every year because, he says, “the right to life to me is a sacred issue.”
Roxanne Sutocky’s main job is to wrangle money, rides and babysitting for women seeking abortions in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, where she is director of community engagement for The Women’s Centers, which has facilities in four states. “People shouldn’t have to go through logistical Olympics to get an appointment,” she said. “Especially when we’re talking about time-sensitive, pregnancy-related care.”
But the legislation wasn t taken up during this special session. Lawmakers could again file it during the regular session, but for now, district leaders and others are speaking out against what they call a punitive measure. As you’re making decisions on behalf of students in Shelby County, please don’t hurt my children. I don’t think it s intentional, but the decisions of grown-ups show children their true colors, Shelby County Schools Superintendent Joris Ray said as the special session closed Friday. Because when you advocate for in-person learning against the decisions of a duly-elected school board, you abridge the very essence of local control and run the risk of hurting my children.