COLUMBUS (AP) — Ohio Gov. John Kasich is reiterating his plea that Medicaid expansion be maintained as President Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers take on a health care overhaul.
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A nonpartisan think tank says Ohio would lose billions of dollars in federal Medicaid funding under the Republican plan.
The Republican Kasich, speaking on NBC’s “Meet The Press” Sunday, says Medicaid serves many people in Ohio suffering from drug addiction, mental illness and chronic diseases.
Kasich says it’s important that Democrats join Republicans to change the law known as Obamacare without cutting off people that need the health insurance protection it provides.
Kasich says it’s crucial to have members of each political party involved after Democrats passed the health care law without Republican votes.
Kasich says no plan is sustainable without bipartisan support.
A new analysis by the Cleveland-based Center for Community Solutions concludes the plan could cost Ohio over $25 billion by 2025.
The GOP plan would change how the federal government helps states pay for the tax-funded health insurance program. The center’s analysis says the resulting payments wouldn’t be enough in Ohio to keep pace with health care costs.
The state expanded Medicaid in 2014 under the Affordable Care Act, and it now serves over 3 million poor and disabled Ohioans.
The Columbus Dispatch reports Ohio’s proposed Medicaid budget for next year is projected at $28 billion, including federal funding.