written by Walt Rogers
I have the privilege of guiding the legislation pertaining to the Healthy Iowa Plan, the alternative to Medicaid expansion, in the Iowa House. Last week, the House passed the bill and sent it to the Senate. I read The Des Moines Resister’s editorial about the bill (“Branstad Plan Still Pales Next to Medicaid,” May 2) and it left me greatly disappointed that the largest newspaper in our state could write an opinion so biased and incomplete.

I, and every legislator in the House, understand the seriousness of this legislation. It doesn’t take an “expert” to do that. It takes caring, objective and discerning people to assess our situation economically and morally.

Medicaid is a flawed and inadequate system. Inadequate was the word used byproponents of Medicaid at the recent public hearing on the Healthy Iowa Plan.

Read the whole editorial in the Des Moines Register

The Healthy Iowa Plan passes the House

I have the privilege of guiding the legislation pertaining to the Healthy Iowa plan, the alternative to Medicaid expansion, here in the Iowa House. On Tuesday the House passed the bill and sent it to the Iowa Senate for consideration

Medicaid is a flawed and inadequate system.  Inadequate is a word used by proponents of Medicaid at the recent public hearing addressing the Healthy Iowa plan.  Medicaid’s reimbursement rates are poor, it is wrought with fraud ($100 billion nationwide by some estimates), it only pays for services instead of inspiring health habits and causes insurance and overall costs to skyrocket.  Expanding it will result in an explosion of the federal budget and taxpayer debt.