Senate Committee Rejects Study On Expanding Medicaid In NC

North Carolina lawmakers have set up another roadblock to Medicaid expansion in the state. A House proposal to study the costs and benefits of expanding the program has been rejected by the Senate Health Committee.

Democratic Representative Darren Jackson added a provision for the Medicaid study to House Bill 998, which focuses on rural healthcare needs.

The News and Observer reports Jackson's amendment garnered bipartisan support.

But Republican Senator Ralph Hise pushed for another amendment removing the study from the bill.

Hise said a different legislative committee should be in charge of approving any future studies.

Republican Senator Joyce Krawiec added another amendment proposing a study that would look at “identifying waste” in the Medicaid system.

Legislative leaders have shot down previous attempts to expand Medicaid, citing potential future costs.