HEALTHCARE/OBAMACARE(ACA)/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Ohio Republican Gov. John Kasich slammed the GOP health care bill on CNN’s ‘State of the Union’ Sunday [5-7-17] morning, calling it ‘inadequate’ and saying his party was ‘trying to fulfill a campaign promise’ in pushing it through.
The former presidential candidate said Medicaid covers 700,000 people in his state, a third of whom have mental illness or drug addictions and a quarter of whom have chronic diseases — people who Kasich said would be hurt by the proposed changes in the bill.
Kasich cited how the bill would limit Medicaid expansion by 2020, which he said would create problems because of the way people cycle off of Medicaid coverage — and never to get back on.
‘I don’t have a problem trying to move the Medicaid expansion, which gives an enhanced match from the federal government, to a more traditional match, but you can’t do that overnight,’ he said.
Kasich also said the bill would require certain people to buy insurance policies on the state exchanges, which come with pricey premiums and deductibles, rendering coverage unaffordable for many of those coming off Medicaid. The tax credit provided under the GOP would not be enough to offset the higher costs, Kasich said.”
-Sophie Tatum, “Kasich: Republican health care bill is ‘inadequate’,” CNN Politics, CNN.com, May 7, 2017 1:40pm