Otter endorses Prop 2 Medicaid expansion
Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter and his wife, Lori, have formally endorsed Proposition 2, the Medicaid expansion initiative.
If approved, the measure would expand Medicaid in Idaho and provide health care for 62,000 Idahoans who fall into the state’s health care coverage gap.
“Allowing the health care coverage gap to persist any longer is not an option,” said Otter. “We cannot continue to let hardworking Idahoans go without health care. I’m proud that the citizens of Idaho have come up with a solution to solve this long-standing problem. Proposition 2 will provide health care to 62,000 Idahoans and it’ll bring $400 million of our tax dollars back to Idaho. In addition, Proposition 2 will keep our rural hospitals and county clinics open.”
Otter and his wife will appear in a television ad, radio ad and mailer in support of the initiative beginning Tuesday.
The Idaho Freedom Foundation is fighting the initiative. The group disputes claims that Idaho tax dollars would return to the state. They quote a report by the Congressional Research Service, which stated three years ago, “If a state doesn’t implement the ACA Medicaid expansion, the federal funds that would have been used for that state’s expansion are not being sent to another state. There is not a set amount of federal funding for Medicaid. Each state gets the federal funding necessary for their Medicaid program.”
