Montana officially became the 29th state to expand Medicaid Wednesday.
Democratic Governor Steve Bullock signed a law Wednesday afternoon expanding the program.
The expansion provides medical care to roughly 45,000 Montana low-income residents.
The state will have to get a special approval from the Obama administration because it seeks to diverge from traditional Medicaid. For instance, enrollees would have to help pay a small portion of their premiums and co-payments.
The bill went through a roller coaster ride to get to the governor’s desk. It passed the state Senate but appeared to die in committee in the Republican-controlled House.
However, a group of moderate Republicans and Democrats employed a little-used legislative maneuver to bring the bill to the House floor, where it was approved.
