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Rep. Foley Responds to Reported Gutting of Medicaid Expansion

April 8, 2013
Democratic Newsroom

COLUMBUS – State Rep. Mike Foley, Ranking Member of the Health and Human Services Finance Subcommittee, issued the following statement after news reports today indicated House Republicans will kill Medicaid expansion in the state’s two year operating budget.

 “I am sickened by the news that House Republicans would rather play politics with over 300,000 Ohioans’ health and well-being instead of promoting sound and responsible health care policy in our state. It seems that a small minority of Republicans in the Ohio House are holding strong policy, good sense and common decency hostage, and that is extremely troubling.

 “In my time listening to testimony on this issue I saw vast, nearly unanimous support for Medicaid expansion. Only tea party groups and a conservative think tank panel, most flown in from out of state, opposed this legislation. Even conservative organizations like the Chamber of Commerce and Ohio Right to Life see the significant value in this program. 

 “It is clear that Medicaid expansion worked for Ohioans at every level. An overtly political decision by Republican ideologues is going to cost Ohioans billions of dollars, while requiring hundreds of thousands of veterans, businesses and individuals to go through contortions to get healthcare coverage.”