Montana became the 30th state to expand Medicaid under Obamacare, adopting a model that other red states could pursue to expand the controversial program.
The state legislature passed the expansion earlier this year, but needed a waiver from the Obama administration because the state’s Medicaid expansion differs from traditional Medicaid. That waiver was granted Monday.
The waiver ensures that Montana enrollees would have to pay a small part of their premiums and co-pays.
The decision means that about 70,000 low-income residents in the state now will qualify for Medicaid.
The Medicaid alternative was seen as a critical element to getting enough support from moderate Republicans in the state legislature.
Expansion took a roller coaster ride to getting finally approved. It appeared earlier this year that the bill would die in a state House committee. Republicans control the state House but not the Senate.
However, a group of moderate Republicans joined with Democrats to use a little-known legislative maneuver to bring the bill to the full House floor, where it narrowly passed in April.
Montana bucked other states that rejected a Medicaid expansion earlier this year.
Lawmakers in major states such as Florida, Tennessee, Utah, Idaho and Wyoming had pushed similar alternative plans, but they didn’t advance.
Things look particularly bleak for Utah, as state Republicans rejected a proposal from state leaders last month to expand Medicaid. Costs and opposition from medical providers who may have had to pay for part of the program was the main reason, according to the Salt Lake Tribune.
The White House praised Montana’s decision to “put people over politics,” according to a statement. The White House also called for the remaining holdouts to join Montana and the other states and the District of Columbia in expanding Medicaid.
