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Beacon Strongly Opposes Governor Haslam's Medicaid Expansion

December 15, 2014 4:02PM

The Beacon Center released the following statement in response to Governor Haslam’s press conference this morning. NASHVILLE – The Beacon Center of Tennessee firmly opposes Governor Haslam’s move to expand Medicaid and the reach of Obamacare’s tentacles into our state. As our recent study with State Budget Solutions and Federalism in Action exposed, President Obama’s Medicaid expansion would cost our state’s economy $3.6 billion, while causing more than 67,000 Tennesseans to lose their jobs. Medicaid has failed to help the uninsured and impoverished. A similar plan in Arkansas has been nothing but a complete disaster. We should instead seek sustainable solutions that provide accessible, high-quality care that can actually make a difference in the lives of those most in need. The Beacon Center’s healthcare reform package for 2015—to be released tomorrow—proves that Medicaid expansion is both unaffordable and immoral. We will actively work with our state lawmakers to soundly reject this proposal and instead pursue meaningful alternatives that put the quality of life for Tennesseans first.