Penn. Gov. Corbett to Announce Medicaid Expansion

Penn. Gov. Tom Corbett is planning to announce at a Monday press conference his support of a version of Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion, Politico reports.

Corbett, a Republican who has long been an opponent of even a limited acceptance of expansion, has been considering types of expansion that rely on private-sector health plans as opposed to those adding to the public Medicaid rolls, similar to the types under consideration in Iowa and Arkansas.

Pennsylvania would reap the benefits of a private-sector plan, as it would bring in billions of Obamacare dollars targeted for states that support expansion and use them to buy private insurance for the state’s poorest residents.

When pressed to confirm Corbett’s Monday announcement, his aides issued a statement acknowledging that “a number of interesting options” on Medicaid expansion and reform are “under review.”

Michael Barley, a spokesman for Corbett’s reelection campaign, admitted that Corbett plans to release a Medicaid plan “soon” and that he’s open to expansion, but only on the condition that it’s accompanied by reforms.

“I can assure you that Gov. Corbett will not expand this broken entitlement program without significant reforms being agreed to by the federal government and assurance that a plan would be fiscally sustainable now and in the future,” Barley said.

The Pennsylvania Senate overwhelmingly backed a version of Medicaid expansion earlier this summer but the plan was shelved after the House removed it from the budget along party lines.