Love note from Jeff City

Greetings, My Fellow Missourians

Marla and I went to the St. Clair County Courthouse to watch our local election results and then stopped by Jim Kalberloh’s watch party at Sugarfoot BBQ. We got to Congratulate Jim and his wife Cristie on winning the Primary for House District 125. Since he does not have an opponent in the November General Election Jim will be our new State Representative beginning in January of 2021.

Voters Approve Medicaid Expansion But State Leaders Voice Concern about Its Impact on the State Budget

Missouri became the 38th state to approve Medicaid expansion as more than 53 percent of voters supported Constitutional Amendment No. 2 during the August primary. While the amendment passed, budget makers in the state continue to have strong concerns about how Missouri will afford the cost of expansion. Many of the state’s leaders have been vocal in their opposition to expansion. Gov. Mike Parson has referred to expansion as a “massive tax increase that Missourians cannot afford.” State Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick said expansion would add another 300,000 people to “a system that’s already strained and is already consuming a massive portion of the state budget, as well as massive portions of the state’s general revenue spending.”

House Budget Chairman Cody Smith noted the state already spends more than $10 billion each year on Medicaid, accounting for nearly 40 percent of last year’s state budget. Even without expansion, the program grows in cost by hundreds of millions annually. Now, the growth in Medicaid spending will far exceed the rate of growth state revenues can realistically be expected to achieve. He said the passage of Amendment 2 will add additional hundreds of millions in state spending. Smith added, “What’s worse is that there is no funding mechanism or source included to pay for it. Because we must have a balanced budget, that’s hundreds of millions that will have to be cut from somewhere, and that usually means education. Proponents of Amendment 2 hold up the benefits of offering health care to able-bodied, working-age adults but are silent on the staggering cost and lack of a plan to pay for it.”

Passage of Amendment 2 means that adults earning up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level will be eligible for Medicaid beginning in July of 2021. With this, Medicaid will expand to individuals earning up to $17,600 a year and up to $36,150 each year for a family of four. Ninety percent of the cost of expansion will be covered by the federal government, but Missouri taxpayers will cover the rest. The Missouri Department of Social Services estimates the cost to the state will be more than $200 million per year, and other estimates have put the added cost as high as $349 million per year.

Budget Chairman Smith said there is no magical pot of federal money that will cover the added cost of Medicaid expansion. He said “it will come from you, and from your kids’ schools, and from your parents’ nursing homes. And it will come from your pocket when Amendment 2 advocates want a tax increase to pay for it.”

Upcoming events: Mark your calendars for the 100 Mile Yard Sale. This year it will be held on Sept. 4 and 5. For more information and updates, please visit the Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/MOHwy54YardSale.

On Aug. 19, Ken and Sue Molzahn are hosting Congresswoman Hartzler at their American Revolutionary War Flagway and you are invited too! You can meet Congresswoman Hartzler and learn about hundreds of flags honoring our founding ancestors. They are celebrating the 241st anniversary of the Battle of Palaus Hook.

When: Aug. 19, at 10:15-11 a.m.

Where: 6120 SE US Highway 54, Collins – 3 miles West of Collins/Hwy. 13 on US Hwy. 54

Interim hours: Now that Session is over for 2020, I will be back in District full time. If you need any assistance my Legislative Assistant Amy Helton will be happy to help you Monday-Thursday.

It is my honor to serve the constituents of District 125. If you ever have questions, concerns, or input, please feel free to contact me any time at (573) 751-4065.

YOUR District 125 Capitol office is 413B, and YOU are always welcome.

If you would like to be added to the e-mail list to receive our Capitol Reports, you may e-mail me at warren.love@house.mo.gov or call the Capitol office at (573) 751-4065 and speak with my Legislative Assistant.