On Anniversary of the ACA, GOP Primary Field Still Opposes Medicaid Expansion
TOPEKA, KS — Sixteen years after the Affordable Care Act became law, Kansas Republicans running for governor are still standing in the way of Medicaid expansion — one of the clearest steps the state could take to expand health coverage, strengthen rural hospitals, and help working families afford care.
According to the Kansas Health Institute, expanding Medicaid under current law would lead to an estimated 120,157 additional enrollees. It would reduce the number of uninsured Kansans, help families who earn too much for traditional Medicaid but still cannot afford private insurance, and provide badly needed stability for hospitals and providers already under financial strain.
The GOP primary field is still defending the same failed Republican blockade that has kept Kansas behind for years. Jeff Colyer has spent years opposing the Affordable Care Act, and Ty Masterson has been one of the leading figures behind the effort to block Medicaid expansion in Kansas.
Their obstruction has already cost Kansas dearly: researchers at the University of Kansas estimated the state forfeited $4.9 billion in federal Medicaid funds between 2014 and 2021 by refusing to expand coverage.
Statement from Kansas Democratic Party State Chair Jeanna Repass:
“Medicaid expansion would cover more than 120,000 Kansans, bring hundreds of millions of federal dollars into our state, and throw a lifeline to rural hospitals, but Jeff Colyer, Ty Masterson, and the Kansas Republican field are still against it. Sixteen years after the ACA became law, they are continuing to choose partisan ideology over common sense – and Kansas families are paying the price.”