Friday, March 29, 2024 Mar 29, 2024
58° F Dallas, TX
Advertisement
News

Deputy Director For Texas Research Institute: Medicaid Expansion Would Be Huge Boon To State Economy

The deputy director for Progress Texas and the Texas Research Institute has penned an editorial for Texas Monthly declaring that expanding Medicaid would be a boon to the state economy and help Gov. Greg Abbott achieve his goal of surpassing his predecessor’s history of job creation.
By |

The deputy director for Progress Texas and the Texas Research Institute has penned an editorial for Texas Monthly declaring that expanding Medicaid would be a boon to the state economy and help Gov. Greg Abbott achieve his goal of surpassing his predecessor’s history of job creation.

Phillip Martin wrote the piece in response to an opposing editorial the monthly magazine published in January. That one was written by John Daniel Davidson, the director of the Center for Health Care Policy at the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Davidson argued that Texas would actually lose jobs if Medicaid was expanded.

Martin breaks that argument down:

 Their information is based on a flawed study from a center-right group, the American Action Forum.

The study is anchored in the assumption that more people enrolled in coverage increases the premiums everyone pays, thus stifling economic opportunities. The study Davidson cites reflects a long-existing argument TPPF has made itself in the past – that “the federal deficit is going to absorb most of the increase in insurance costs,” a problem TPPF argued “is perhaps the single most crucial fact about the entire law.”

Fortunately for Texans, though unfortunately for TPPF, that’s not the case. First, the U.S. deficit is shrinking. As a percentage of GDP, the deficit is at its lowest point since President Reagan, and long-term debt is primarily driven by Bush-era tax cuts, not any laws passed by President Obama. Finally, premiums are growing at a much, much slower rate than before ACA went into effect. Here in Texas, 85% of those who bought health insurance through the exchange used a subsidy to lower the costs. As a result, their average premium was $72-per-month after a 76% discount provided by the subsidies – which was “the seventh lowest out of the 36 states” utilizing the federal exchange.

He then goes on to note the business support necessary to push Medicaid expansion, or an alternative, through the legislature. He also discusses the huge group of 1 million or so working poor that would be covered if the state could access the federal dollars. Read the whole thing here.

Related Articles

Image
Arts & Entertainment

Here’s Who Is Coming to Dallas This Weekend: March 28-31

It's going to be a gorgeous weekend. Pencil in some live music in between those egg hunts and brunches.
Image
Arts & Entertainment

Arlington Museum of Art Debuts Two Must-See Nature-Inspired Additions

The chill of the Arctic Circle and a futuristic digital archive mark the grand opening of the Arlington Museum of Art’s new location.
By Brett Grega
Image
Arts & Entertainment

An Award-Winning SXSW Short Gave a Dallas Filmmaker an Outlet for Her Grief

Sara Nimeh balances humor and poignancy in a coming-of-age drama inspired by her childhood memories.
By Todd Jorgenson
Advertisement