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U.S. NEWS Monday 1 august 2022

Medicaid expansion breakthrough within reach in N. Carolina

tremely encouraged by of Oxford, a mother of three they couldn’t trust Congress
how far we’ve come,” said and a cosmetologist who is to keep the federal gov-
Erica Palmer Smith, execu- currently unemployed. She ernment’s promise to pay
tive director of Care4Car- spoke this week outside the 90% of the costs of expan-
olina, a coalition of 150 Legislative Building at an sion. They said the state’s
groups that has worked for event urging lawmakers to Medicaid program — now
expansion since 2014. act. “Hear our stories. Hear with 2.7 million enrollees —
Other advocates are tired regular people like me and had been overspending for
of waiting. They say too people that want to work.” years and was ill-prepared
many of the working poor The apparent change of to take on more.
are uninsured, risking their heart followed years of And fundamentally, they
health and their lives. Oth- GOP suspicion about the argued that more people
ers on traditional Medicaid 2010 Affordable Care Act, would become dependent
worry that without expan- which Republicans derided on government if allowed
sion, they’ll no longer be as “Obamacare” only to to benefit from Medicaid,
covered if they make too see the label, as well as the which now mostly serves
much money. program, become highly poor children and their
Rebecca Cerese, a policy advocate at the North Carolina “I don’t know what to do,” popular. parents and low-income
Justice Center, speaks at a vigil in front of the North Carolina said Courtney Crudup, 32, For years, Republicans said elderly people.q
Legislative Building in Raleigh, N.C.
Associated Press
By Gary D. Robertson ditional Medicaid but too
(AP) — After a decade of little to receive subsidized
vigorous opposition, most private insurance.
North Carolina Republi- “If there’s a person in the
cans have now embraced state of North Carolina that
the idea of expanding the has spoken out against
state’s Medicaid program Medicaid expansion more
to cover hundreds of thou- than I have, I’d like to meet
sands of additional low- that person,” Senate lead-
income adults. Legislative er Phil Berger said when he
approval finally appears sought to explain his rever-
within reach. sal at a news conference in
During the General As- May. “We need coverage
sembly session that ended in North Carolina for the
July 1, the GOP-controlled working poor.”
House and Senate passed The two chambers couldn’t
separate, bipartisan mea- work out their differences
sures by wide margins that before adjourning, and
would put the state on the talks between legislative
path to Medicaid expan- leaders and Democratic
sion. Some details remain to Gov. Roy Cooper — a long-
be worked out, but there’s time expansion supporter
a real opportunity to ham- — have idled since then,
mer out a compromise by at an impasse over other
year’s end. health care reforms that
It’s a remarkable political senators seek. But Berger
turnabout in North Caro- remains bullish on ultimate
lina, sure to be analyzed in success. “I think we’ll get
the dozen states that have there,” he told reporters re-
yet to accept the federal cently.
government’s offer to cov- “There is a lot of work that
er people who make too needs to be done ... but
much to be insured by tra- overall we are feeling ex-