LANSING- Senator Bert Johnson (D-Detroit) expressed contempt for Republican Senators who left the Capitol today for summer recess without moving legislation that would expand Medicaid coverage to nearly half a million low-income Michigan residents. Governor Snyder cut short his trip to Israel to come back to Lansing to corral votes. Those efforts proved fruitless.
“Michigan Republicans are quick to act on legislation that is harmful for Michigan citizens. From dissolving schools, to Emergency Manager takeovers, to passing Right to Work in the dead of night,” said Senator Johnson. “Unfortunately, when it comes to doing the right thing like making sure nearly half a million low-income people can get healthcare, they drag their feet and delay, delay, delay. People’s lives are literally at stake and the Senate Republican Caucus failed to act. It’s a disgraceful day for our state.”
In accordance with the Affordable Care Act, HB 4714 would have expanded Medicaid for state residents who are under 133% of the federal poverty level, offering health care coverage for more residents while securing federal funding to help pay for it. In total, 320,000 Michiganders would have been covered in the first year of the expansion, and an estimated 470,000 would have been covered by 2021. Michigan’s uninsured population would have dropped by about 46% if Senate Republicans had not failed to act.
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