Now that Oklahoma has submitted a plan to expand Medicaid to the federal government, lawmakers must figure out how to cover the state’s estimated $150 million share.
Gov. Kevin Stitt favors boosting fees under what’s known as the Supplemental Hospital Offset Payment Program. Senate Minority Leader Kay Floyd said there are hundreds of millions of dollars in Oklahoma’s main savings accounts, the rainy day and revenue stabilization funds.
"Both of those are to be used when we need the money, and this is a time we need it. Why would we put an increase in SHOPP on the hospitals, which is just going to be passed along to the patients if they can even get it done in such a short period of time when we’ve got money in savings?" Floyd said.
Other lawmakers have proposed using future tobacco settlement payments to pay for Medicaid expansion.
Lawmakers still don’t know much about Stitt's plan, either. Senate President Pro Tem Greg Treat said all they know about SoonerCare 2.0 is what Stitt has said publicly.
"State plan amendment is just are you expanding or not expanding and then the waiver that he’s talked about when he was in DC and here in the state would be another step in that process. So, still eagerly awaiting more specifics," Treat said.
Stitt proposes expanding Medicaid this summer, then transitioning it to the federal government’s new, capped-funding system, a change that will let him add work requirements and other restrictions to the program.
Meanwhile, supporters of a state question to amend Oklahoma's constitution in order to expand Medicaid are still waiting on Stitt to set an election date.
