Gov. Bill HaslamNASHVILLE – A Republican House member and 21 colleagues today introduced legislation that would bar Tennessee from participating in the expansion of Medicaid called for under the federal Affordable Care Act.
Rep. Jeremy Durham, R-Franklin, said Tennessee taxpayers “cannot afford the long-term financial burden of expanding our Medicaid rolls.”
The freshman lawmaker said that “due to the extreme uncertainty surrounding the federal fiscal situation, it is increasingly important that we as legislators exercise fiscal responsibility and not accept federal funds to expand programs that we’re not prepared to fund ourselves.”
Republican Gov. Bill Haslam remains undecided on whether he will pursue the Medicaid expansion, which is estimated to affect 200,000 low-income adult men and women.
“The governor is a fiscal conservative and understands what this would mean to the financial situation of our state,” Durham said. “I suspect he’s just doing his homework.”