Feds reject Gov. Dennis Daugaard's partial Medicaid plan

PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — Federal officials have rejected a request by South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard for a partial expansion of Medicaid.

The federal health overhaul gives states the option of expanding Medicaid to cover people earning up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level. Daugaard and Republican lawmakers wanted to expand eligibility only up to 100 percent of the poverty level because those above that mark can buy subsidized private insurance through the new health care law.