New Alaska Governor Plans for Medicaid Expansion Refused by His Predecessor
Over the weekend, a team of Alaska health care leaders huddled in a classroom at the University of Alaska Anchorage, part of incoming Gov. Bill Walker’s transition conference. By Sunday afternoon, large sheets of paper scribbled with the state’s most pressing health care priorities — from behavioral health to changes in state leadership — were plastered across the classroom walls.
Walker had asked the group to identify “low-hanging fruit,” participant Valerie Davidson told the group, that he could accomplish within 90 days of being sworn into office. At the top of the list was Medicaid expansion, an initiative rejected by Gov. Sean Parnell, but which Walker said during the campaign would be one of his first priorities upon assuming office.
Walker has said repeatedly that Medicaid expansion will be a priority for his administration. Yet how Walker will forge ahead — with or without the approval of the Republican-controlled Legislature — is still up in the air, as legislators and the incoming governor parse out details of what is necessary to expand the government program to cover an estimated 40,000 additional Alaskans.
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