Another Week in the Veto Garage
Governor Cooper vetoed the State Budget on
June 28.
We are still stuck in this budget veto garage, on our
29
th
day
since Governor Cooper proposed his compromise budget, with no response from the House or Senate’s leadership.
There has been no counter offer,
not even an attempt to override Governor Cooper’s veto, from the Republican Leadership in the House and Senate.
Nothing but delay.
All we have received from Speaker Tim Moore is an irresponsible ultimatum:
Give up on Medicaid Expansion and we will come to the table.
We will not leave 500,000 North Carolinians behind.
We will not sit idly by while thousands of our neighbors die for lack of coverage. We are here to serve our citizens and we are sticking with them.
We will continue to work hard, and we will join our fellow states, Republican and Democratic alike, in expanding Medicaid, providing healthcare, saving taxpayer dollars, and saving lives.
Last week I detailed the success that Ohio has seen since they expanded Medicaid under Republican Governor John Kasich.
Now we have new data
from our neighbor Virginia, and their success with Medicaid Expansion is astounding.
With a Republican State Senate and a Republican State House, Virginians came together across party lines and passed Medicaid Expansion in their state budget.
Today, 300,000 Virginians have healthcare
who were uninsured just a few months ago.
Because
Republicans and Democrats worked together
and passed Medicaid Expansion, 300,000 Virginians can see a doctor, get treatment, and lead happy, healthy, productive lives.
Here in North Carolina we could do the exact same thing. We could extend healthcare coverage, which in our state would insure over
500,000 citizens—6,000 to 8,000 in Haywood, Jackson, and Swain
—in just a few short months, starting November 1
st
.
Taking this step would bring $5 billion of our tax dollars back to North Carolina,
$40 million
to Haywood, Jackson, and Swain as a part of this two-year budget. This would create
40,000 good healthcare jobs
statewide, over
400
in Haywood, Jackson, and Swain, and it would save more than
1,000 lives per year across our state, 10-20
in our district.
You have heard me go over the numbers time and time again. The facts are in, and we know from experience across the country that this is not a Democrat versus Republican issue.
This is a question of Right versus Wrong.
It’s time to do what’s Right for North Carolina.
It is time for our Republican leadership to come to the table, in good faith, to pass a compromise budget that works for everyone.