6/13/13 - As Governor Rick Snyder signs a nearly $49 billion state budget, lawmakers in the House have yet to act on a bill making more low-income adults eligible for government-funded health insurance. The state House Committee on Michigan Competitiveness was divided in approving House 4714, which would expand Medicaid eligibility to thousands of non-disabled adults in 2014. The expansion is mandated under the federal Affordable Care Act and critics see it as an expansion of a "welfare state", vowing to defeat the bill. Wes Nakagiri, founder of the Hartland-based Tea Party Group RetakeOurGov, provided both verbal and written testimony in opposition of the bill during the recent committee hearing. He tells WHMI whatâs somewhere between troubling and interesting is that the bill passed out of a GOP-controlled committee, without a majority of Republicans on board. The Michigan League for Public Policy supports the expansion. Policy Analyst Jan Hudson said the bill isn't ideal, but will still make a difference in the state and will bring in billions of federal dollars to help our economy while providing coverage to people who desperately need it. Meanwhile, Governor Snyder has signed a nearly $49 billion state budget that takes effect October 1st, with few line item vetoes. (JM)
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