Bill Description: House Bill 578 would expand Medicaid to provide services for incarcerated youth.
Rating: -4
Does it create, expand, or enlarge any agency, board, program, function, or activity of government? Conversely, does it eliminate or curtail the size or scope of government?
Medicaid is one of the largest and most expensive government programs, always growing in size, scope, and spending. Through it, people are becoming increasingly dependent on government and private providers are being forced out of the market.
House Bill 578 would create Section 56-2208, Idaho Code, calling for a “state plan amendment” to make “the services authorized in this section available for eligible juveniles who are within thirty (30) days of the date they are scheduled to be released from a correctional facility, as that term is defined by section 18-101A, Idaho Code, following adjudication.”
These services include “any screening or diagnostic service that meets reasonable standards of medical, behavioral health, or dental practices, as determined by the state, or as indicated as medically necessary; and targeted case management services, including referrals for appropriate care and services available in the geographic region of the home or residence of such eligible juvenile, where feasible, under the state plan or waiver of such plan.”
This expansion of Medicaid, made “pursuant to section 1902 of the social security act,” means more people will be participating in a redistributive socialized medicine program.
(-1)
Does it increase government redistribution of wealth? Examples include the use of tax policy or other incentives to reward specific interest groups, businesses, politicians, or government employees with special favors or perks; transfer payments; and hiring additional government employees. Conversely, does it decrease government redistribution of wealth?
Medicaid is funded through a combination of tax dollars and government debt. Any time individuals are enabled or encouraged to seek health care or health care subsidies through government, they receive services funded through redistribution.
(-1)
Does it increase government spending (for objectionable purposes) or debt? Conversely, does it decrease government spending or debt?
All forms of Medicaid expansion require increased government spending, even if a majority of the spending comes from federal funds. Federal money comes either from taxpayers or from taking on more debt, which leads to higher inflation and devalued savings. And someday, the bill will come due for American taxpayers.
House Bill 578’s fiscal note estimates the first-year costs of this expansion at $311,400 in state general funds and $634,600 in federal funds. That’s nearly $1 million to expand a program that is already unsustainable and notorious for cost overruns.
(-1)
Does it violate the principles of federalism by increasing federal authority, yielding to federal blandishments, or incorporating changeable federal laws into Idaho statutes or rules? Examples include citing federal code without noting as it is written on a certain date, using state resources to enforce federal law, and refusing to support and uphold the Tenth Amendment. Conversely, does it restore or uphold the principles of federalism?
A majority of the funding for Medicaid comes from the federal government, which means that as the program grows, the state becomes increasingly dependent on debt-financed federal dollars, and those federal dollars become an ever-larger share of the state budget. As has been seen with Medicaid and other federal programs, federal dollars come with strings that obligate the state to comply with policies and priorities that go against its best interests.
(-1)
