During a press conference Governor Bill Walker spoke to why he is continuing the process of expanding Medicaid by introducing it as a bill to legislature.
Gov. Walker: “It was healthy for the general fund, we paid lots of dollars out of the general fund for healthcare that we won’t have too once it is In place to receive to replace general fund dollars and it is a catalyst for reform. We heard a lot about reform and reform has been ongoing we have continued that on, reform is a part of this legislation but reform isn’t something you start on one day and you stop on another day, it’s an ongoing process, this will be the catalyst for that.”
Previously Alaska Representatives requested it be removed from the operating budget and introduced as a stand alone bill which the governor initially opposed.
After the House stripped the reform from the operating budget, House Democrats introduced an expansion bill and Republican Senator Pete Kelly introduced a reform bill.
Today Walker spoke about moving forward with his legislation that included both.
Gov. Walker: ”We’re going to present this bill which he have, we will present it in committee as well and we expect that we’ll be able to convince and continue to meet with legislators on a one on one basis or however they want to be convinced that this is the best thing for Alaska, so its kind of an old fashion kind of way of doing it but we can do it one vote at a time.”