There is not much that has gotten bipartisan support in Raleigh this legislative session, but earlier this year Medicaid expansion accomplished that feat.
When Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, signed the bill into law in March, he was joined by both Democrats and Republicans in a rare moment of unity at the state capitol. The bill was praised as a way to save about 600,000 uninsured residents from the burden of medical bills.
That said, Medicaid expansion has a pretty big caveat — the bill is tied to the state budget.
Republicans in the General Assembly have yet to come to an agreement over the budget. If Cooper would want to veto the budget for any reason, he would also have to veto Medicaid expansion along with it.
On the next Charlotte Talks, Mike Collins and our panel of guests discuss the history of the debate over Medicaid expansion in North Carolina, why the state has been so slow to move expansion forward and hear the stories of those impacted.
GUESTS:
Rose Hoban, founder and editor at North Carolina Health News
Colin Campbell, capitol bureau chief at WUNC
Nicholle Karim, executive director of policy development at North Carolina Healthcare Association
