Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback is staunchly fighting against the winds of change in his state and his state's Republican Party. On the same day the legislature sent their bill expanding Medicaid to him, he vetoed it. But that doesn't mean the issue is done.
This is, obviously, a huge setback for Medicaid expansion efforts—but the fight isn't completely over. The Kansas legislature is likely to explore whether they can garner enough support to override the governor's veto, which would require a two-thirds majority in both the House and the Senate.
Specifically, Medicaid expansion would need 27 votes in the 40-member Senate and 84 votes in the 120-member House. It received 25 votes in the Senate and 81 votes in the House, meaning the bill is just a few votes shy of a veto-proof majority.
Kansas hospitals, it appears, plan to be involved in pushing for a veto override, according to Marketplace’s Dan Gorenstein.
It also means, in a larger scope, that Paul Ryan's efforts to destroy Medicaid because he's "dreamed about it" since his frat-boy days and because he needs that money for big tax cuts are also facing a headwind.
The Republican governors from the states that have already accepted Medicaid expansion have been fighting to keep it, arguing to any congressional Republican who will listen that they've got to have that funding to take care of their citizens. But it's far more than just those expansion states arguing for Medicaid.
In Virginia, Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) on Monday pledged to revive efforts in his state’s Republican-led legislature to pass Medicaid expansion. Georgia’s Republican governor, Nathan Deal, also announced plans to change his state’s Medicaid program. Medicaid advocates in North Carolina see hope for renewed momentum as Gov. Roy Cooper (D) has sought to expand the program there through executive action.
That funding is critical to states meeting not just the obligation of caring for their citizens, but of balancing their budget. That's particularly true as the opioid crisis deepens. It's a public health crisis that demands an answer like Medicaid, which provides treatment. Denying the necessity, the humanity of providing this care is to deny reality of society in 2017. Which seems to be the primary achievement of the current ruling faction in the GOP.