Iowa Nun from Nuns on the bus calls on Branstad

Iowa Nun from ‘Nuns on the Bus’ Calls on Governor Branstad to Expand Medicaid

“There is no reasonable excuse” not to expand, says Sister Jeanie Hagedorn of Des Moines


Des Moines, Iowa -- Today at Noon, a Senate subcommittee will cast the first votes of this session on bringing affordable health care to uninsured Iowans through Medicaid expansion.

Despite overwhelming support from Iowa Hospitals, the AARP, and numerous other organizations, Governor Terry Branstad has refused to follow the bipartisan lead of Republican Governors Kasich of Ohio and Brewer of Arizona who are calling for Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act.

In advance of today's subcommittee meeting, Sister Jeanie Hagedorn, CHM, issued the following statement:

"Thousands of Iowans live and work every day, just on the edge of poverty. They do not make enough money to afford health insurance, but make just enough not to qualify for Medicaid. They have slipped through the cracks in our system, leaving them without health care, unprotected in case of emergency and unable to plan for their future. Unfortunately, Governor Branstad is preventing a solution, by refusing to expand Medicaid."


"There is no reasonable excuse for Governor Branstad’s refusal to expand Medicaid. By expanding Medicaid, an additional 150,000 Iowans would receive access to health insurance, and the state would save money - $546 million over the next decade. Medicaid expansion would also create jobs and provide an economic boost to Iowa hospitals."


"Even political considerations should not be a reason for rejecting the expansion. Several of Governor Branstad’s colleagues, Republican governors, have agreed to Medicaid expansion. Their states will see all the benefits of this program. Governor Branstad should follow their bipartisan lead."


"Expanding Medicaid is the right thing to do, fiscally, and morally. Governor Branstad should stop preventing the care needed by so many Iowans living on the edge of poverty and expand Medicaid."


Sister Jeanie Hagedorn lives in Des Moines, Iowa, and last year rode with the ‘Nuns on the Bus’ and participated in their efforts to promote economic fairness and a faithful budget.