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Medicaid debate should remain focused on the merits of expansion
Senate approval of the governor’s Medicaid expansion bill clearly reflects the will of the people. Senate Majority Leader John McComish led the charge, breaking rank from Republican colleagues who opposed the bill.
Sooner or later, key bills likely to emerge from legislative limbo
Gov. Jan Brewer's moratorium on signing bills ensured that after the budget is finished and before lawmakers adjourn, a flurry of legislation will head her way.
Many of the proposals stuck in the pipeline can be rolled into the budget, but others are non-budgetary changes in statutes that need only a few final actions, and a vote, to be sent to the governor when she is ready to receive bi[...]
Mental health contract put on hold, potentially delaying new approach to patient care
A multibillion-dollar contract for mental health services in Maricopa County is on hold while the Arizona Department of Administration sorts through a protest by the losing bidder.
Former senators eying Medicaid referendum that could delay any expansion
Former Sens. Frank Antenori and Ron Gould, GOP rivals of Gov. Jan Brewer who were frequently on the receiving end of her veto stamp, are hoping to return the favor.
If the Legislature approves the Medicaid expansion, the former lawmakers want to put it on the 2014 ballot in the hopes of convincing voters to reject Brewer’s proposal.
Tobin abandons plan to send Medicaid expansion to the ballot
House Speaker Andy Tobin is dropping his proposed resolution to send Medicaid expansion to the voters, and will deal with the issue in the Legislature, one way or another.
House prepares to rip Senate budget apart, rebuild it from scratch
Building a budget that can gain support from the majority of lawmakers in both legislative chambers and get it signed by the governor takes a delicate balance.
Expand Medicaid for the sake of people like Christine Zeigra
Arizona’s option to restore and expand Medicaid has been hotly debated for months, with most of the conversation revolving around dollars and cents, or politics and bureaucracy. Sadly, the Arizonans who need action from our lawmakers are the people whose voices are rarely heard.
Tobin fighting to hold caucus together, keep the budget in GOP handsh
A fight is brewing in the House that Speaker Andy Tobin didn’t ask for, and he’s trying to keep his caucus members from tearing each other apart over Medicaid expansion – and stop the budget from getting hijacked.
Votes are there for Medicaid expansion, but not without Speaker Tobin
House Speaker Andy Tobin has steadfastly said there aren’t enough votes to pass Medicaid expansion through the House, although he seems to be the only one who still thinks that.
Most lawmakers, even ardent Medicaid expansion opponents, acknowledge there are enough votes to pass Medicaid expansion in the House, and that they have been there for several weeks.
But Tobin said [...]
Brewer changes Medicaid plan to ease critics’ concerns
Some of the concerns raised in the Legislature regarding Gov. Jan Brewer’s Medicaid expansion plan haven’t fallen on deaf ears.
In the amendment that included Brewer’s expansion plan in the Senate’s budget on May 16, the Ninth Floor included several changes aimed at alleviating concerns over her proposal.
Brophy McGee receives threatening voicemail over Medicaid expansion
The debate over Medicaid expansion has become so contentious that Rep. Kate Brophy McGee received an “abusive, threatening and vulgar” voicemail that scared her so much she is having House security investigate the matter.
A new challenge for Medicaid expansion?
Republic columnist Robert Robb on Friday advanced a legal argument suggesting that by “shoehorning” the Medicaid expansion proposal into a health care BRB, the Senate might have violated the Constitution’s single-subject rule.
