Politics & Government
To Christie, Medicaid Expansion Veto Keeps Options Open
Conference focuses on need for cooperation as major shift looms in how care is delivered and success is measured.
By Andrew Kitchenman (courtesy NJ Spotlight)
Gov. Chris Christie is planning to expand Medicaid eligibility for low-income New Jersey residents, but he doesn’t want the expansion to be backed up by state law.
On Friday, Christie vetoed a bill (S-2644/A-4233) that would have made the expansion he announced in February permanent.
Find out what's happening in South Brunswickwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
While he didn’t spell out why he vetoed the bill, he said when originally announcing the expansion that if the fiscal and public health benefits ever change “because of adverse actions by the Obama administration, I will end it as quickly as it started.”
Christie also vetoed bills that would have:
Find out what's happening in South Brunswickwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
restored funding for family planning clinics -- S-2825/A-4172;
expanded Medicaid family-planning funding for single residents -- A-4171/S-2824;
and funded a public awareness campaign for the federally operated health insurance exchange -- A-3878/S-2673.
While the Medicaid expansion veto may initially appear to be inconsistent with Christie’s support for the expansion itself, it was foreshadowed by concerns raised by Republicans during committee hearings on the bill. During those hearings, Republican legislators said Christie administration officials had told them that they were concerned that the bill would prevent the state from reversing course on the expansion if the federal government doesn’t live up to its obligations.
Read more at NJSpotlight.com
NJ Spotlight is an issue-driven news website that provides critical insight to New Jersey’s communities and businesses. It is non-partisan, independent, policy-centered and community-minded.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.