Conservative House members and outside groups are agitating to end the Affordable Care Act’s Medicaid expansion sooner than a bill approved by two key House committees on Thursday would allow. But that could cost GOP leaders moderates’ votes.
“It’s a big problem,” Rep. Charlie Dent, R-Pa., said Thursday about reports that President Trump is open to upping the timeline.
“And not just me. I know I’m speaking for several members when I say taking that window back from 2020 to 2018 will be a very big problem for many Republican members who represent expansion states,” said the chairman of the moderate Tuesday Group.
Battleground states such as Michigan, Pennsylvania and Ohio took advantage of the federal government’s incentive to expand Medicaid under Obamacare, as did other Republican-led states. If Congress pulls the rug out from under them too quickly, however, they won’t have time to react and collectively could be faced suddenly with millions of newly uninsured working poor.
“It’s going to be a huge problem,” Dent said.
Ultimately, 32 states expanded the government health insurance program for the indigent to some degree.
Dent said he, and most of his moderate bloc, haven’t decided if they will vote for the bill yet.
