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TNGOP Blocks Medicaid Expansion AGAIN

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“Why do you keep blocking MEDICAID EXPANSION when the deal is this good even with 300,000 uninsured? I’ve never heard 1 good reason.”

Reps Hawk, Cepicky, Smith, Terry, Hicks, Kumar, Lafferty, and Rudder just blocked Medicaid expansion AGAIN.

 

Why All Dems Support Medicaid Expansion with Sheila Younglove

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Senate Candidate District 16, Sheila Younglove, joins us again to answer the question: Why Medicaid Expansion is supported by every Democrat running for state office. It is because it is outrageous that affordable health care for thousands of Tennesseans has barely been discussed in the General Assembly since Governor Haslam’s Insure Tennessee was rejected in committee in 2014. With the pandemic, an estimated 750,000 Tennesseans could become uninsured! It is unlikely that the 3rd legislative session will even consider adopting Medicaid Expansion as have 38 states.  We really need some change in our state government. Vote wisely.

FULL PODCAST available on Apple Podcasts here, and wherever else you like to listen here.

HOLLER PODCAST – Brandon Thomas

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Tennessee State House candidate Brandon Thomas joins us to discuss his race in one of the most flippable districts in the state. He is running a progressive campaign against Republican incumbent Mike Sparks who was recently asked by The Holler whether or not the Civil War was fought over slavery, to which he responded “I haven’t really studied it.” Brandon is running in State House District 49 (Smyrna, Murfreesboro, and La Vergne).

FULL PODCAST available on Apple Podcasts, and wherever else you like to listen.

FALSE ALARM: Lt. Gov. Mcnally Almost Backs Medicaid Expansion By Mistake

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On the Tennessean’s Grand Divisions podcast with Joel Ebert and Natalie Allison this week, Tennessean writer Natalie Allison asked what bills will be most controversial this session, and after listing Medical Marijuana (like that you can see on https://www.canadacannabisdispensary.co/) and school vouchers Lt. Gov. Randy Mcnally went on to mention Medicaid Expansion:

Mcnally told the Tennessean:

“On Medicaid Expansion… Senator Bailey is working on some different ideas to take and work with the governor on and try to get an amendment through that would address the population that’s below 138% of the poverty level. And address it on a sliding scale voucher type thing, health savings accounts, there’s a number of different options that we haven’t really fleshed out yet.”

“Under 138% of the poverty level” is where Medicaid expansion would draw the line. What Mcnally was talking about sure sounded a lot like Medicaid expansion. So Natalie Allison asked him about that:

“So will Republicans be pushing a bill to expand Medicaid in some instances, or…?”

Still sounding a bit confused, Mcnally went on:

“Well we’ll be I think looking at an effort to… a lot depends on what we think we can through CMS, but we’re looking at an effort to address the population that probably was most in need of insurance but was left out of health care… Our hope is it’s not expansion of Medicaid, it’s not Obamacare, and that’s – we’re just trying to take care of sick people that lack insurance mainly because they’re incomes are not at a rate that they can afford it.”

So it’s not Medicaid, or Obamacare, it just attempts to do the exact things Medicaid Expansion under Obamacare was trying to do… JUST FOR THE LOVE OF GOD DON’T CALL IT MEDICAID EXPANSION OR OBAMACARE. At this point, I’m pretty sure some medical patients that aren’t getting the help they need would rather some of the medical cannabis and something like this PAX 3 to consume their medicine. At least they could find some relief and also ease their anxiety regarding a “Medicaid expansion or Obamacare” that could come in the future and still seem to be useless.

This might be a good time to point out that Medicaid Expansion is popular in Tennessee.

Still confused because Mcnally was sounding pretty pro-Medicaid expansion, the Natalie Allison pressed further:

So… you’re saying it’s not Medicaid expansion?”

At this point Senator Jack Johnson swoops in, noticing Mcnally is flailing and maybe almost about to support something that would actually help a lot of people, which would be truly awful.

Sen. Johnson:

“It absolutely is not… I want to be very clear about that, it’s not a proposal to expand medicaid. It’s a proposal to give us more flexibility with our existing medicaid dollars, ok? And if we’re given that flexibility we believe we can generate savings that will generate additional dollars with which we might be able to cover some additional people, or provide better services- better quality services. That’s one conversation and that needs to stay in its lane right there. Any conversation of drawing down additional federal dollars is a totally different conversation, ok? And I think maybe during some of this those two things have gotten interwoven.”

So if you’re one of the hundreds of thousands of Tennesseans without coverage, good news – maybe what they’re proposing might cover some other people if they can scrounge up some loose change somewhere, but as for the $26 Billion over 10 years the federal government wants to send us to cover you, that’s a still big NO THANK YOU — because who wants that?
They know they need to seem like they’re trying to help people get the care they need – but actually helping people would be a bridge too far.
Basically their block grant proposal is to take the money that is supposed to go towards health insurance for low-income people in a lump sum, and trust that the guys who up until now haven’t seemed to care that vulnerable Tennesseans can’t get the care they need will A) make sure it goes to the right place, and B) Be able to make those dollars go further somehow.
That’s some plan.
The Tennessean reporters then went on to commiserate about how confusing the whole thing was. Natalie Allison:
“All the reporters sitting there were pretty confused. We thought he was saying Republicans were going to launch a medicaid expansion effort this session. We eventually realized that wasn’t the case and went on to talk about the block grant program.”
She then pointed out that it remains to be seen how they would actually secure coverage for those currently in the coverage gap:
“When we asked them how they were going to pay for that, there isn’t really a clear answer… the bill itself is pretty vague.”
As Rep. John Ray Clemmons and Gloria Johnson say in the video below, the Republican-proposed block grants may not even be legal, won’t cover anyone new, and won’t help rural hospitals.
It doesn’t fix the problem.
It’s time to expand Medicaid like most of the country already has. It would help a lot of people, and pay for itself. Let the Republicans call it whatever they want, let’s just do it.
Holler at Governor Lee if you agree.

VIDEO: “Please Expand Medicaid, Governor Lee. People Are Dying.” – A Cry For Help As Another Rural Hospital Closes

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This week we learned Clay County’s Cumberland River Hospital would be shutting its doors, making it the 13th rural Tennessee hospital to shutter since the Republican refusal to expand Medicaid took hold.

The numbers show rural hospital closures are far more common in states that refuse to expand Medicaid. Hospitals in Medicaid expansion states were 84 percent less likely to face hospital closures than their peers in non-expansion states, a new Health Affairs study shows.

As part of a #WeAreCelina Day of Action yesterday, in solidarity with Celina and Clay County, Democratic officials Rep. John Ray Clemmons, Rep. London Lamar, Rep. Mike Stewart, Rep, Gloria Johnson and Rep. Dwayne Thompson held a press conference at the capitol, where they were joined by Tennessee Democratic Party Chair Mary Mancini and cancer survivor/Medicaid recipient Kelly Gregory.

Gregory gave an emotional presentation, and all 5 Democratic reps called on Governor Lee and the Republicans to put politics aside and accept the federal dollars to expand Medicaid as the previous Republican Governor wanted to, pointing out that every year that goes by Tennessee loses billions of dollars – $26 Billion over a decade, in fact – and more people will die unnecessarily as hundreds of thousands of Tennesseans are left without health insurance.

Below is video from the press conference:

Channel 5 Puts A Face On TN’s Coverage Gap

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Yesterday’s News Channel 5 broadcast contained a powerful segment about the hundreds of thousands of Tennesseans stuck in the “coverage gap” thanks to the TN GOP’s refusal to expand medicaid, which has cost our state $6 Billion and counting and helped us lead the country in rural hospital closures per capita. Read more

REP. WINDLE: “Medicaid Expansion Would Ease Rural Hospitals’ Burden”

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This week we learned Clay County would lose yet another rural hospital, putting Tennessee into the double digits and cementing our place as the per capita leader in rural hospital closures.

Last night WSMV ran a piece on the situation, visiting with citizens, EMT’s and local officials to hear about the strain this would now put on the community. Read more

Yet Another Rural Hospital Closes – Clay County

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As Tennessee continues to reject billions each year, yet another rural hospital shuts its doors, this time in the Clay County/Celina area.

“the closing will cost 146 full & part-time employees their positions”‬

‪Not expanding Medicaid for political reasons is an absolute shame. ‬Hope Governor Bill Lee and the state legislature see the light before more unnecessary damage is done.

Read the article from NewsTalk941.com Here.