Havreites back Bullock's health plan

A Havre woman was at Gov. Steve Bullock’s side Monday as he unveiled his plan to expand Medicaid to thousands of working Montanans.

Lynn Nash told the gathering that as a nurse practitioner at Bullhook Community Health Center, she sees lots of people who have serious health problems that could have been treated earlier.

But people are reluctant to seek health care because they don’t have health insurance.

Nash said this morning that she met with Bullock at a meeting in Great Falls where they talked about the need to expand Medicaid. He later asked her to speak about her experiences at Monday’s press conference.

She said she treats these people all the time.

“They are usually in their 40s, 50s or early 60s,” she said. “They are working people. They are the people who clean our office buildings, the waitresses who serve us,” she said.

Often they cannot afford more expensive medications or don’t have money to pay for lab tests and other medical procedures, she said.

The press conference was attended by people from various health care organizations who back the governor’s plan,

Because Sen. Jon Tester was speaking to a joint session of the Legislature, Nash said, she didn’t get a chance to discuss the issue with the Hi-Line delegation, some of whom have been cool to the idea of Medicaid expansion.

Nash was joined at the press conference by Havreite Crystal Estelle, who would be eligible for Medicaid if the governor’s plan were approved.

A single mother of two children whose job involves caring for disabled people, Estelle could be treated for rheumatoid arthritis and diabetes if the bill passed.

"I work just as hard as people working for a higher wage," said Estelle, who is also a college student. "I find it ridiculous that I do what I do and cannot get health coverage."

Under House Bill 249, adults making up to $16,105 a year and a family of four earning up to $32,913 would qualify under the guidelines.

"These are Montanans who struggle to make ends meet," Bullock said, referencing cooks, ranch hands and day-care providers. "Studies show that the vast majority of those without access wake up every single morning and go to work."

Bullock's proposal is based on the Healthy Montana Kids program, which provides coverage of children in low-income families. It would expand Medicaid in the same manner to adults through competitive state contracts with private insurance companies for care at negotiated rates.

Republican lawmakers rejected the expansion in 2013 saying they feared the state eventually would have to pony up the costs.

A measure in Bullock's bill would terminate coverage if federal funding dropped below 90 percent. However, that doesn't make Republican Sen. Fred Thomas, chairman of the Public Health, Welfare and Safety Committee, more willing to support the plan.

He said future legislatures easily could change that provision and once a government program starts, it's nearly impossible to repeal.

Earlier this month, Thomas and other Republicans unveiled their own proposal called the Montana Healthy Family Plan. It would expand Medicaid to as many as 15,000 people.

Thomas said he expects a bill with the major elements of that proposal to be introduced in the next week.

"I think what we're proposing is an excellent compromise and keeps Medicaid for society's most vulnerable and uses public dollars as efficiently as we can," Thomas said.

Thomas does like one section of the Bullock bill involving a mandatory fraud and abuse reporting system and said he thinks Republicans and Democrats will be able to work out a compromise.

Bullock said he's willing to work with lawmakers to find a solution, but said those who offer something significantly less than what the state could are not bringing a real plan.

"It's just essentially a deflection," Bullock said.

In response Thomas said, "We're here to drill down on the issues that need to be addressed, not just for spending more government money."

The District of Columbia and 27 states have expanded Medicaid.

(Associated Press material was used in this report.)