President Obama thanked Ohio Gov. John Kasich for passing the Affordable Care Act on Monday, recognizing the presumptive Republican candidate for the 2016 White House during a White House event with the National Governors Association.
“Today, because of the Affordable Care Act, more than 10 million Americans have the peace of mind that comes with insurance,” Obama said. “I want to thank all the governors, Democrats and Republicans, supporters and some opponents of the ACA, who have expanded Medicaid to millions of people over the last two years. I think there is a recognition that this makes sense and is more important than politics. As Governor Kasich said for Ohio, ‘It saves lives. Without a doubt.’ And if your state is not one of the 28 that have already expanded Medicaid, I urge you to consider it because our team is ready to work with you to make it happen.”
Kasich said he opposed Obama’s proposed Medicaid expansion in 2010 when he first ran for governor.. However, Kasich has since changed his mind and now says his Christian faith compels him to accept bigger government.
“If You’ve Ever Read Matthew 25” – Kasich he said while promoting a balanced budget amendment in South Dakota, “I think to myself, ‘I want to feed the hungry and clothe the naked,’ and I have to tell you — I read a horrible story in The Wall Street Journal over the weekend about people, one man in particular, who froze to death in Montana. And they turned down about a half a billion dollars in aid, I was told. That bothers me.”
Montana is indeed one of 22 states that still haven’t adopted Obama’s Medicaid expansion, as has South Dakota. But it’s far from clear that enrolling in Medicaid guarantees any access to actual health care. Full federal funding for Medicaid reimbursements dried up in 2014, and in 2015 Medicaid reimbursements plummeted by an average of 43 percent across all states and 45 percent in Ohio.
Thanks to Kasich and Obama, nearly one in four Ohioans is currently enrolled in Medicaidwhich is still an income-tested social program.
