Gerald Dial: Alabama should expand Medicaid
I was born in Delta, Alabama, and I have spent the majority of my life in Lineville, working as a teacher, a coach, and as a state senator in the Alabama Legislature. I served my country in the Alabama National Guard as a Brigadier General and have a strong sense of duty for the state of Alabama. I know the joys and the challenges of life in rural Alabama, and I am committed to keeping our rural areas strong. As a retiring legislator and a former chairman of the State Senate Health Committee, I can appreciate the struggles our lawmakers face in trying to fund key state services. However, I also understand the importance of quality health care in our local communities, and I believe that by not expanding Medicaid we are missing a huge opportunity to strengthen our local economies. For years, we have used state dollars to recruit industries to locate in Alabama, and we have been very successful. We now have an opportunity to support existing health care jobs and make sure every Alabamian has access to care when they need it, and where they need it. Investing in Medicaid expansion will keep our rural hospitals open, save hundreds of local jobs, and provide basic insurance coverage to almost 300,000 Alabamians. These are our friends and neighbors, hardworking Alabamians who don’t earn enough to afford health insurance. They work in our local restaurants, in our local retail shops and build our houses. Medicaid expansion would enable them to continue working while keeping their family healthy. What happens if Alabama passes up this opportunity? More hospitals will close. Already, six rural hospitals have closed since 2011, and 88 percent of the remaining rural facilities continue to operate but are losing money every day, providing care to thousands of un-insured individuals. Many have had to eliminate services, cut staff and, if nothing changes, a number of them will likely have to close their doors. And when a community loses its hospital, it also loses doctors, pharmacies, and other providers, devastating the community not only in terms of access to health care, but in job and economic losses. I realize we don’t have all the answers on how Medicaid expansion will be funded. But I do know that for every $1 the state invests, the federal government will return $10 to the state. That’s a good deal for Alabama and one that we can’t afford to pass up. And remember, that federal funding comes from tax dollars we are already sending to Washington, dollars currently funding expanded Medicaid programs in 33 other states and in Washington, D.C. Instead of sending our money out of state, let’s invest that money in Alabama’s health care industry. We’ve got to find a way to keep our state’s health care system viable. I urge all Alabamians to find out more about Medicaid expansion and the tremendous benefit it will have, particularly in our rural areas. I’m afraid that the cost of doing nothing is too great. ••• Gerald Dial represents District 13 in the Alabama State Senate, which includes all or parts of Randolph, Lee, Cleburne, Clay, Cherokee, and Chambers counties.
Walt Maddox announces mental health policy plan
Tuscaloosa Mayor and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Walt Maddox on Monday released his policy plan to address mental health issues in Alabama if elected Governor. Maddox’s plan focuses on improving mental health through Medicaid expansion. “Nationwide, almost one-third of persons who receive health insurance coverage through Medicaid expansion have a mental disorder, a substance abuse disorder, or both,” said Maddox. “People who are uninsured have a higher prevalence of mental health conditions than the overall population, and expansion is key to providing broader access to mental health treatment.” Maddox says Alabama has consistently decreased or level funded mental health “in an era where society is experiencing increasing mental health problems.” “All of Alabama’s 54 rural counties are classified as mental health care shortage areas,” Maddox continued. “Our jails and prisons have become de facto mental hospitals, but without providing effective treatment. There’s no reason we cannot return to the days of providing comprehensive and effective prevention and treatment for mental illness.” As such, Maddox’s plan includes focusing on prisoner mental health. “For too long, politicians in Alabama have focused on meting out harsh punishment through long prison sentences, while ignoring the fact that many prisoners have mental health problems and most of them will return to society one day.” In June 2017, a federal court found Alabama prison system’s mental-health care to be “horrendously inadequate” and thus in violation of the U.S. Constitution’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment. His mental health plan also includes: Providing mental health resources to schools. As part of his Alabama Education Lottery proposal $25 million will be allocated annually for Community Innovation Grants that can be used by local school systems to improve social services to students, including providing mental health resources. Appointing a professional commissioner of mental health who is given free rein to advocate for more funding, more effective treatments, and better facilities. Separating out substance abuse programs from under the Department of Mental Health, so that a cabinet level officer would report to the Governor on the state’s opioid crisis and other substance abuse problems, allowing the Department of Mental health to concentrate on its core mission. “Alabama has betrayed its own legacy of effective and compassionate mental health treatment by continually underfunding mental health services, relying on jails and prisons to house the severely mentally ill, and passing the state’s responsibility down to communities and local governments. Under my administration, mental health will be a priority,” Maddox posted on Facebook announcing his plan.
Conservative group calls on governor to reject federal Ex-Im Bank
In a letter circulated by Rainy Day Patriots, executive director Zan Green and state co-chair Ann Eubank chided Gov. Robert Bentley for his support for the 71-year old Export-Import bank, a trade credit agency created by Congress to facilitate international commerce. The group called the institution “a fund for corporate welfare,” and echoed sentiments from President Barack Obama who has opposed the extension of the bank’s charter. The group also praised Alabama U.S. Rep. Gary Palmer for opposing the bank as well, saying it is a relic of the past that no longer serves a legitimate public purpose, and instead has become a piggy bank for governmental financial adventures. “The bank largely benefits large corporations that shell out millions for multitudes of lobbyists to descend upon the lawmakers and bureaucrats in DC to secure funding for their exports — something that most small business owners cannot afford to do,” Green and Eubanks wrote. “For example, the bank loaned nearly half a billion dollars to First Solar — to sell solar panels to itself. It is past time for the bank to expire.” The group also criticized the other members of Alabama’s congressional delegation, linking to an item on the website for the conservative Heritage Foundation’s Action for America organization that lists 83 House members who have publicly voiced their opposition to the bank’s continued existence. The Rainy Day Patriots likened their efforts to that of the state Senate, which roundly rejected Bentley’s support for expanding Medicaid in the state to draw down federal healthcare dollars, a deeply unpopular position among state Republicans. “Our Alabama congressmen should reject Governor Bentley’s advice on the Ex-Im Bank, just as our State Senate resoundingly rejected Governor Bentley’s desire to expand Medicaid. Congressman Palmer deserves our gratitude, and it’s time for the rest of Alabama’s congressmen to join him,” the letter concluded.
Governor Robert Bentley open to Medicaid expansion
By Kim Chandler, Associated Press MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Gov. Robert Bentley has said he is open to expanding Alabama’s Medicaid program, but the plan would have to be designed by the state and it would require people to work. In a speech to legislators Thursday, Bentley reiterated his past opposition to a straight expansion of Alabama’s Medicaid program under the Affordable Care Act. However, the governor, elaborating more than he has previously, said he is willing to consider a state-designed program that uses the federal Medicaid expansion dollars to increase coverage. The Republican governor said a program would have to use the private sector to insure people and also put work and job training requirements on them. “It needs to be tied to some things. If you are an able-bodied person, it needs to be tied to the fact that they are trying to get a job or they have a job. There are some stipulations there,” Bentley said. The Affordable Care Act gives states federal funds to help expand Medicaid to cover people at up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level, which is $27,310 for a family of three in 2014. A U.S. Supreme Court ruling made the expansion optional. Bentley has so far refused. Most of the states that have expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act have done so by raising the income eligibility on their existing Medicaid programs. A few states, including Pennsylvania, Iowa and Arkansas, have gotten waivers to use the federal expansion dollars to buy Medicaid recipients insurance coverage through the marketplace or to create state-tweaked programs. Proponents of Medicaid expansion reacted cautiously. “Our goal is to get uninsured people covered. We’re eager to hear from the governor. We certainly prefer movement to a slammed door,” said Jim Carnes, policy director of Alabama Arise, an advocacy group for low-income families. A study by the University of Alabama at Birmingham estimated 300,000 additional Alabamians would be covered under a Medicaid expansion. While Bentley discussed a work requirement, the federal government has curtailed what conditions those waiver states could impose on Medicaid recipients. The Republican governor of Pennsylvania initially sought to require recipients to be actively searching for jobs, but later dropped the idea. The state runs a separate program to encourage employment for participants. “While encouraging work may be a state objective, it is not the purpose of the Medicaid program and, as such, is not part of the Pennsylvania demonstration,” CMS spokesman Aaron Albright said in an email. Bentley said his office is not working on any proposal. “We really have not gone into detail. Other states have talked about it, and they may have turned them down, but now they have a Republican Congress, and things may be different,” Bentley said. The governor has been a harsh critic of the Affordable Care Act. Bentley first announced in 2012 that Alabama would not expand Medicaid or set up an insurance exchange under the federal health care law. However, he has sometimes used qualifiers about not expanding Medicaid in its current form. “I will not expand Medicaid as it exists under the current structure because it is broken,” Bentley said in 2012. Expansion became an issue during this November’s election when his opponent, Democrat Parker Griffith, repeatedly criticized Bentley for his refusal to expand Medicaid. “I hope he does expand Medicaid. I think it will be good, not only for the people of Alabama, but for the hospitals of Alabama,” Griffith said. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
