Medicaid expansion still unsettled in some states

State legislators in Michigan could vote as early as Tuesday on a bill to expand the health insurance program for the poor. In Wyoming, lawmakers consider an alternative approach developed by Arkansas. And in Arizona, a group trying to block the expansion faces a deadline to put the matter on the ballot.

Detroit News: Michigan Legislators To Tackle Medicaid Expansion
State senators return to the capital city this week to decide whether to expand the state's health insurance program for the poor after spending the summer considering one of Gov. Rick Snyder's top priorities. Supporters of adding more than 400,000 to the Medicaid rolls contend a majority of the 38 senators are prepared to vote for the legislation as early as Tuesday. But that's what they said in late June before GOP Senate leaders refused to hold a vote on the bill without the support of at least half of their 26-member majority party caucus (Livengood, 8/26).

Wyoming Tribune Eagle: State To Consider Alternative Medicaid Expansion
State lawmakers are exploring a new plan that could extend health insurance to more than 17,000 low-income residents. A legislative committee will meet today in Lovell to discuss a potential bill that would expand the state's Medicaid program though a "premium assistance" option. The plan would cover roughly the same population as the optional Medicaid expansion that Wyoming and several other states rejected earlier this year, but this idea would use the funds to enroll residents in private insurance plans through the new exchanges instead of allowing them to be Medicaid eligible. The model was first developed by Arkansas earlier in the year (Brown, 8/26).

The Associated Press: Medicaid Expansion Critics Face Upcoming Deadline
A group trying to block a new law expanding Medicaid in Arizona by collecting enough signatures to put the matter on the ballot for voters to decide says it's on track to gather enough support by an upcoming deadline. The Arizona Daily Star reports that the United Republican Alliance for Principled Conservatives declined to say how many signatures have been gathered so far (8/25).