BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - State senators have refused to
expand Louisiana's Medicaid program so the working poor could get
government-funded health insurance.
The Senate health care
committee voted 5-3 Wednesday against coverage expansion legislation
proposed by Bogalusa Sen. Ben Nevers, a Democrat.
A House
committee was considering a similar proposal, though it faces strong
opposition from Gov. Bobby Jindal and other Republican leaders.
Supporters
of the expansion hoped the state's dire financial troubles and the
offer of billions of federal health care dollars could send more votes
their way after failing to gain passage in previous years.
Backers
of Medicaid expansion say health coverage would be extended to nearly
300,000 people. Opponents say the increased coverage would be too costly
for Louisiana and the federal government and would expand a broken
government-run health system.
Two years after Gov. Bobby Jindal began privatizing the state-run
charity hospital system, problems and financial questions continue to
appear as lawmakers and communities sift through the spill-out effect.
The private managers that now operate the hospitals say they're $159
million short in Jindal's budget of what they need to provide adequate
care for the poor and uninsured in the fiscal year that begins July 1.
The LSU medical schools in New Orleans and Shreveport are stuck with
millions of dollars in annual costs associated with former and retired
hospital workers they say they can't afford.
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