Earlier this month, Paul Burka wrote a blog post titled Asleep at the Switch discussing how the
success of Medicaid expansion in other states could be a very powerful argument
for Democrats. Burka explains that the White House predicts an incredible
amount of savings in states that adopted Medicaid expansion as well as a
dramatic increase in preventive healthcare. If Texas would have adopted
expansion, we could have saved $3.1 billion in 2014 and $10.4 billion by 2017.
Burka suggests that Republican leaders’ hatred for Obama has caused them to
miss out on an opportunity that would have provided great benefit to the state
of Texas. He believes that the only legitimate reason to reject the expansion,
in spite of the undeniable economic and health benefits, is simply doing it to
“stick it to Obama.“
Burka asserts that the negligence and ignorance displayed by
the Republicans for rejecting Medicaid expansion provides an easy argument for
Democrats to win. He believes that local government, the medical community, and
the business community would be on Wendy Davis’ side if she were to use this as
a way to gain support. However, neither Wendy Davis nor any other politician
seems to want to be the voice that says Texas should do Medicaid expansion.
I found Burka’s argument to be very powerful and indicative
of some of the issues we see in Texas politics. Texans often times express an unwavering
dedication to conservative beliefs, which results in many lost opportunities
for growth and success. When this stubbornness towards change results in the
loss of billions of dollars of federal funds, as well as the improved health of
citizens, it seems like something should be done.
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