Murphy care ... Medicaid Expansion | Eastern North Carolina Now

    In a February 3, 2019 editorial, the Reflector endorsed the Carolina Cares bill by Representative Dr. Greg Murphy as a conservative alternative to Medicaid expansion. The only problem with that is that it is neither an alternative nor conservative. If we want to have a real debate on whether or not Medicaid expansion or its relative Carolina Cares are good policy let's have that debate but pretending that Carolina Cares is not just Medicaid expansion without calling it Medicaid expansion is a farce.

    There is nothing conservative about yet another government run healthcare system that simply expands the government's role in our lives, uses taxpayer dollars to fund expansion of insurance and creates a new bureaucracy. Furthermore the requirements of Carolina Cares are nearly identical to the proposed expansion of Medicaid requirements that would add nearly 500,000 beneficiaries to an already fraud-ridden and expensive government program. Civitas Institute has said of Carolina Cares "Medicaid Expansion by Another Name is Still Medicaid Expansion".

    I welcome a frank an open debate on Medicaid expansion but pretending Carolina Cares is not Medicaid expansion by another name is disingenuous.

    Publisher's note: This was written by 3rd District congressional candidate Gary Ceres and contributed here on BCN for publication.