Republican majorities block efforts to expand Medicaid in Georgia and Kansas

ATLANTA (AP) — Plans to expand Medicaid coverage to over half a million more people in Georgia and Kansas were defeated by Republican-led committees in the states’ legislatures Thursday.

There are currently only 10 states that don’t cover people with incomes up to 138% of the federal poverty line, after North Carolina began offering Medicaid to uninsured adults last December.

In Georgia, Democratic Sen. David Lucas of Macon argued that lawmakers from both parties should grab federal bonus money that would pay for the first two years of extending coverage.

“We can’t kick the can down the road anymore. $1.2 billion is in D.C., waiting for Georgia to expand. But how long will it be there?” Lucas asked the committee.

More than 430,000 uninsured Georgia adults and 150,000 Kansans could gain coverage if Medicaid is broadened, health research group KFF has projected.

Kansas’ Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly had expected federal funds and bonus dollars to cover the $715 million cost of expanding Medicaid, wipe out the state’s costs and even cover an additional $62 million in other social services spending.

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