ATLANTA (AP) – House Democrats on Wednesday slammed Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp’s Medicaid waiver proposal, saying it will be more expensive, cover fewer people and take longer than the full Medicaid expansion they support.
Rep. James Beverly, a Macon Democrat and chairman of the state House Democratic Caucus, called the Republican-sponsored bill “heinous” and “ill-conceived” in a press conference.
Kemp’s plan sailed through a Senate committee Tuesday. It authorizes his office to pursue Medicaid waivers from the federal government.
A waiver, as opposed to full expansion of the program, would give Georgia the flexibility to adopt a more conservative plan. Kemp has made clear that he will not consider full Medicaid expansion.
Georgia is one of 14 states that have not fully expanded Medicaid as prescribed under the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.