New Data On Medicaid Expansion Reveals Just How Cruel Virginia Republicans Were To Oppose It
Richmond, VA – Virginia Democrats successfully campaigned on a pledge to expand Medicaid to over 400,000 Virginians in 2017, and now new Medicaid enrollment data shows just how important fulfilling that promise was.
The Virginian-Pilot Editorial Board put it best in a recent editorial: "the expansion was sorely needed. Low-income Virginians have been signing up for help in paying for health care in greater numbers than expected...Together, the ACA and the Medicaid expansion have made it possible for more than 600,000 Virginians to get health insurance." The Pilot also noted that the new Medicaid enrollees were thosemost in need of affordable care. A fifth of new enrollees have a serious mental health need and 7,000 are struggling with opiate addiction.
On top of this, a new study published by the National Bureau of Economic Research shows expanding Medicaid had tremendous effects on health outcomes across the country. The study found that states that expanded Medicaid under the ACA saw a dramatic decrease in mortality among 55-64 year olds. The researchers estimated that over 15,000 people died as a result of states that did not expand Medicaid.
"Electing Democrats literally saves lives. For years, Virginia Republicans kept hundreds of thousands of people across the Commonwealth from accessing affordable healthcare by blocking Medicaid Expansion. Recently released data shows the extent of the damage they caused and how badly Virginians needed this assistance. Some, like Speaker Kirk Cox, tried desperately to cover up for their mistakes after historic Republican losses in 2017, while others have held fast in their cruelty, opposing Medicaid Expansion until the very end. Come November, they'll all be held accountable,"said DPVA Press Secretary Grant Fox.
Republicans who fought against Medicaid Expansion until the very end include some of the VA GOP's most vulnerable members:
- Bill DeSteph (SD-8)
- Glen Sturtevant (SD-10)
- Amanda Chase (SD-11)
- Siobhan Dunnavant (SD-12)
- Bryce Reeves (SD-17)
- Roxann Robinson (HD-27)
- Tim Hugo (HD-40)
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