Richard Womack: No Pie for Me!

May 21, 2013 3 Comments
money_suitcase

There’s been a lot of gossip swirling around the vote to expand Medicaid in Arkansas. For example, how did proponents of expansion pick up 8 votes from Monday (when the bill first failed) to Tuesday when it passed? There’s been a lot of talk about bribery or extortion -- Rep. Nate Bell even went to the House floor and spoke of “threats” that had been leveled against House members. Rep. Bruce Westerman, in a fiery speech, asked members if their votes were worth “30 pieces of silver?” … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 2013 General Assembly, Arkansas Legislature, Medicaid, Obamacare Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

On the Arkansas Times, Part III: Are Private-Option Advocates Really That Much Smarter Than We Are?

May 20, 2013 2 Comments
scary-giant-brain-alien

Upon rereading David Ramsey’s piece on the genesis of the “private option,” it’s hard not to notice the flood of admiring compliments he bestows on the intellect of its creators. They are “clever,” “smart,” “open-minded,” and “pragmatic.” As they work in tandem with Governor Mike Beebe, they are “thoughtful and nuanced.” In particular, Senator Jonathan Dismang’s “comfort with getting into the weeds on policy details” makes him “open to pragmatic … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 2013 General Assembly, Arkansas Media, Medicaid, Obamacare Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Introducing, The Arkansas Project Podcast

May 17, 2013 Leave a Comment
TAP podcast phone

(Click here to listen on your mobile device) We are proud to present to you the inaugural episode of The Arkansas Project Podcast. We are hoping to produce one show a week to keep you up-to-date on what's going on at the capitol. In the near future, the show will be available for download in the iTunes store, but for now, you can enjoy it here on the blog. For your reading pleasure, here are the stories we mention in the show today: Carter quote on "private" option opponents IRS … [Read more...]

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The Warring Messages of the Private Option

May 17, 2013 5 Comments
38643_web_medicaid-signing

At the Saline County TEA Party meeting last week, Rep. Andy Mayberry told his constituents that the struggle over the private option made him feel like he was being forced to jump out of the third story of a burning building: There’s no way, if I just stand there, that I’m going to survive. I’m gonna burn. There’s a window over here that I can choose to jump out of and I might die in that fall. I know I’m going to die if I stay there and don’t do anything. But I might just survive … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 2013 General Assembly, Arkansas Legislature, Medicaid, Obamacare Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Day of Reckoning in Saline County: Who Said It?

May 11, 2013 21 Comments
mystery legislator

Thursday night, the Saline County TEA Party hosted a town meeting so that their members could question the Saline County legislators who had supported the “private option.” About five state legislators representing Saline County attended; at least as many legislators from outside Saline County attended as well. Almost every public official who was there has been a friend of the Advance Arkansas Institute and, in some way, has fought for good-government reforms. But I have become … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 2013 General Assembly, Arkansas Legislature, Gallery, Medicaid, Obamacare Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Legislators to Convene With Saline Co. TEA Party Tonight

May 9, 2013 8 Comments
don__t_tread_on_me_by_muslimpatriot-d3hgu4z

Tonight, the Saline County Tea Party has scheduled a forum -- at Brown's Restaurant at 6:45 in Benton -- inviting their state legislators to discuss the Medicaid expansion / "private option" that many of them supported. The original invitation to legislators, from Ed Hairston of the Saline County Tea Party, read We have many members concerned about your vote on this bill, they have asked me to invite you to our next meeting on May 9th to convince us to continue to support you. After that, Ed … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Arkansas Legislature Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

The Health Care Boondoggle: Medicaid Doesn’t Improve Health Outcomes

May 2, 2013 4 Comments
piggybank320

Any government program is, by definition, a failure -- unless it improves peoples’ lives. Some conservatives think that improving people’s lives through government is difficult at best (and sometimes impossible), and that the burden of proof is on the advocates of social programs to demonstrate that they truly help people. I tend to agree. So I watched in disbelief as many Arkansas Republican legislators recently went along with Governor Beebe’s plan to expand the Medicaid program -- … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Arkansas Legislature, Health Care Reform, Medicaid, Obamacare Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Fig Leaves & “Moving On”

May 1, 2013 5 Comments
MedicaidChart_ARKANSAS_FINAL1

Advance Arkansas Institute President Dan Greenberg was recently asked to summarize the battle over Medicaid reform for The Heritage Foundation. His piece is on their blog, The Foundry. Here's a taste: In plain English, the maneuver Arkansas was contemplating would gain the state no additional flexibility on benefits or cost sharing beyond the (very limited) scope allowed under current federal Medicaid rules. Thus, the notion that the “private option” could somehow produce significantly … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 2013 General Assembly, Health Care Reform, Medicaid, Obamacare Tagged With: , , , , , ,
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