I 185 won't fund Medicare or traditional Medicaid

Montana voters are being asked to make a major policy decision this year that will have long-term effects on the state budget and the tax burden of all Montanans.  I’m referring to I 185, the ballot initiative that would make permanent an expensive entitlement program called Medicaid Expansion.

As voters prepare to make this serious choice about the direction of state spending, it’s important to understand exactly which programs, and people, are affected.

One major program not impacted by I 185 is Medicare, which covers healthcare costs for the elderly as well as some younger people...