House to debate Maine hospital debt repayment

House to debate Maine hospital debt repayment
May 21, 2013 17:30 EDT

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) -- The Maine House is scheduled to debate a bill that would pay off Maine's $484 million debt to the state's hospitals, with a Democratic-backed amendment calling for the state to accept federal money to expand Medicaid to roughly 70,000 people.

The bill to be debated late Tuesday afternoon follows Senate approval of the bill earlier in the day.

The bill would pay the state's share of the hospital debt for past Medicaid services, $186 million, with money from future state liquor sales. The federal government would pay the remaining $298 million.

It would also authorize expansion of Medicaid coverage under the Affordable Health Care Act. Majority Democrats say that's the morally and economically right thing to do.

Republicans say federal matching rates could drop over time and cost the state more money.

Source: http://www.wgme.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.me/29f063ba-www.wgme.com.shtml

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