The 'Incredible Tug Of War' Over O'Care Repeal And Medicaid Expansion

By TIERNEY SNEED Published FEBRUARY 16, 2017, 6:00 AM EST

How to do deal with Medicaid expansion has become the latest sticking point in Republicans’ effort to dismantle the Affordable Care Act. While most lawmakers acknowledge it’s a major source of tension, there appears to have not been any decisions made yet as to whether states should be able to keep their expanded eligibility -- and whether the federal government should continue to subsidize a vast majority of it.

“That’s the $94 question, and I think there will be an incredible tug of war,” said Rep. Mark Sanford (R-NC), a House conservative who unveiled his own Obamacare replacement plan Wednesday.

“That won’t be decided in a bill like mine. That’s going to be decided at the conference level, I think, ultimately, with sort of what repeal looks like or doesn’t look like, and I don’t think anybody has divined the answer to that one yet,” Sanford said.

GOP lawmakers who represent red states that opted into the expansion have said from day one that they wanted to treat the issue delicately. But the path forward on a solution just got a whole lot more complicated this week with the House Freedom Caucus’ endorsement of the 2015 Obamacare repeal legislation that was vetoed by President Obama. That bill would phase out the Medicaid expansion over the course of two years. While Freedom Caucus conservatives have signaled some wiggle room in that stance, they have made clear their resistance to maintaining the expansion.

more
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/obamacare-repeal-medicaid-expansion