The decision is likely to trigger a lawsuit from supporters of Medicaid expansion
Credit: AP
FILE - In this Oct. 25, 2020 file photo, Missouri Gov. Mike Parson speaks during a campaign rally at a gun store in Lees Summit, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File) Author: Associated Press Updated: 1:03 PM CDT May 13, 2021
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. Missouri Gov. Mike Parson dropped plans Thursday to expand the state s Medicaid health care program to thousands of low-income adults after the Republican-led Legislature refused to provide funding for the voter-approved measure.
The Republican governor said his administration had withdrawn a request to expand coverage that had been submitted to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in compliance with a constitutional amendment passed by voters last August.
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JEFFERSON CITY Missouri Gov. Mike Parson dropped plans Thursday to expand the state s Medicaid health care program to thousands of low-income adults after the Republican-led Legislature refused to provide funding for the voter-approved measure.
The Republican governor said his administration had withdrawn a request to expand coverage that had been submitted to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in compliance with a constitutional amendment passed by voters last August.
He noted that the state s $35 billion budget approved by lawmakers last week didn t provide the funding he had requested for an expansion of Medicaid, which is known in Missouri as MO HealthNet.
Daniel Shular / Special to St. Louis Public Radio
Originally published on May 13, 2021 12:52 pm
Gov. Mike Parson has pulled out of efforts to expand Medicaid, a move that almost certainly guarantees a lawsuit that could determine the future of a voter-passed initiative bolstering the health care program.
After voters approved a constitutional amendment last year expanding Medicaid, Parson’s administration had sent an amendment to the federal agency that oversees the program to follow through. The amendment would allow someone with an annual income of $17,600, or roughly $36,000 for a family of four, to get coverage.
But the GOP-led legislature declined to fund expansion, citing concerns over the long-term financial impact of the move. In a statement Thursday, Parson said he was withdrawing the amendment to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that would expand Medicaid.