Wis. GOP-controlled budget committee sides with Gov. Walker in rejecting Medicaid expansion

News outlets also offer related coverage from New Hampshire, Arizona and Missouri.

The Associated Press: Committee Rejects Expansion Of BadgerCare
The Republican-controlled budget committee on Tuesday sided with Gov. Scott Walker in voting to reject a federally funded expansion of Wisconsin's BadgerCare Medicaid program even though accepting the money would lead to more people receiving insurance at a cheaper cost to the state. Republicans on the Joint Finance Committee said they agreed with Walker that there was no certainty the federal government would follow through with its commitment to pay for the expanded coverage in future years (Bauer, 6/4).

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: State Budget Panel Votes To Pay Hospitals $73.5 Million For Uninsured Patients
Republicans on the Legislature's budget committee on Tuesday voted to pay hospitals up to $73.5 million over two years to care for uninsured patients but otherwise stuck with Gov. Scott Walker's response to reject a federally funded health care expansion that would boost the state's bottom line by $119 million over two years. The Joint Finance Committee adopted the measure on a 12-4, party-line vote as it headed into its final round of budget approvals (Marley, 6/4).

The Associated Press: Hassan Making Pitch To Expand Medicaid In N.H.
Democratic Gov. Maggie Hassan urged the Senate on Tuesday to reverse course and expand Medicaid to an estimated 58,000 poor New Hampshire adults. The Senate votes Thursday on its version of the state budget for the two years beginning July 1. The Senate budget would study Medicaid expansion under the federal Affordable Care Act, unlike the House's spending plan, which would expand Medicaid (Love, 6/4).

Arizona Republic: Arizona House Leader Schedules Vote On Budget, Medicaid
Saying he was running out of time and patience in negotiations with Gov. Jan Brewer over Medicaid expansion, Arizona House Speaker Andy Tobin ended a nearly three-week standoff on Tuesday by putting into play the state budget and health-care program for Arizona's poor. Tobin, R-Paulden, who had been pushing his own Medicaid-expansion plan, was the last key impediment to a decisive vote on the Republican governor's top legislative priority (Pitzl and Reinhart, 6/4).

St. Louis Post-Dispatch: States That Don't Expand Medicaid Will Pay More For Uncovered Care, Study Warns
Gov. Jay Nixon is highlighting an independent study released today on health care in states that forgo Medicaid expansion. The report from the RAND Corporation, an independent global policy think tank, claims that 14 states that have opted not to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act will collectively spend $1 billion more on uncompensated care in 2016 than they would if Medicaid were expanded. ... "This independent study builds on the already overwhelming evidence that strengthening Medicaid in Missouri is the right thing to do for our citizens, and the smart thing to do for our state," the governor said in a statement today (Crisp, 6/4).