Maine is going to be the first state in the country to have a popular vote on expanding Medicaid. They’ve reached this point after Gov. Paul LePage’s five vetoes of legislative efforts to help the people of the state by taking the Obamacare Medicaid expansion. A citizens’ initiative easily qualified for the ballot this fall, and LePage’s latest fight was about the language of that initiative on the ballot. He just lost.
A campaign by Maine’s firebrand Gov. Paul LePage (R) to make sure Medicaid is labeled “welfare” in a ballot initiative this November to expand it to tens of thousands low-income residents has come to a screeching halt, with Secretary of State Matt Dunlap (D) unveiling a much more neutral wording.
When Mainers go to the polls this fall, they will see the following question:
“Do you want Maine to expand Medicaid to provide healthcare coverage for qualified adults under age 65 with incomes at or below 138% of the federal poverty level, which in 2017 means $16,643 for a single person and $22,412 for a family of two?”
That’s as factual and neutral as you can get for ballot language. LePage has previously threatened to sue if he didn’t get his way to have “welfare” or “entitlement” included in the language, but as of yet hasn’t responded. He previously threatened to sue if he didn’t get his way on this.
Can you chip in $3 so that we can help provide health care for 70,000 low-income Mainers?