As president of an organization dedicated to improving the lives of people with mental illness, I see the devastating consequences that being uninsured has on the people of our state. Sadly, we know what happens when people with a mental illness don’t have access to healthcare; they end up in hospital emergency rooms, in jail, or on the streets, with worse long-term outcomes and at greater cost to the state and local government.
On Tuesday, Nov. 6, we have the unique opportunity to take action for about 62,000 Idahoans who don’t have access to healthcare because they fall into what’s called the “coverage gap”—they earn too much to qualify for Medicaid and too little to afford coverage through Idaho’s health insurance exchange. Proposition 2 would fix that problem by providing Idahoans making less than $17,000 a year or a family of three making less than $29,000 a year access to health coverage through Medicaid.
Prop 2 provides us an opportunity to not only improve health outcomes for Idahoans but also bring significant economic benefits to the state. By expanding Medicaid, the burden is shifted away from hospital and clinic uncompensated care to the federal government. The federal government will pay at least 90 percent of the cost of Medicaid expansion, which means for every $1 we spend on Medicaid, the federal government will pay $9. We know that 33 other states have already opted to insure their working poor and it’s time for our federal tax dollars to stay here in Idaho. It is estimated that Prop 2 would bring nearly $400 million of our federal tax dollars back to Idaho—money that other states have been getting for years. Those funds would help pay for the expansion, create jobs, and boost our economy.
Furthermore, a recent study by University of Idaho professor and economist Steven Peterson found that Medicaid expansion would create more than 5,000 new jobs in Idaho and generate more than $20 million in new tax revenue annually. This money can be used for education, infrastructure, and other important policy priorities.
Prop 2 has been endorsed by a variety of leaders in the Idaho business, patient, and medical communities such as the Idaho Sheriffs’ Association, the Idaho Education Association and the Boise Metro Chamber.
We all benefit if more of us have access to healthcare and life-saving coverage. Uninsured patients cost all of us, as hospitals shift the costs of those unable to pay their bills onto other patients.
Vote for Prop 2 on Nov. 6 or by in-person absentee voting to ensure we bring our tax money home from Washington, D.C., to help Idaho families get healthcare and boost our local economy.
Michael Sandvig, President
NAMI Idaho (National Alliance on Mental Illness)