An article from the Wall Street Journal online, “States of Personal Privilege”, talks about what the states have been doing in order to avoid the addition “$37 billion in costs” if Senator Max Baucus’s (pictured to the left) health care reform bill is passed. The extra money that would be a complete burden for all the states is mainly due to the part of Baucus’s bill that wants to expand Medicaid eligibility. By expanding Medicaid eligibility, more uninsured people can be covered by this government funded insurance program but the taxpayers and the states budgets will be the ones suffering. However, Nevada, Rhode Island, Oregon, and Michigan (so far) worked out a way that the additional Medicaid expenses will be completely paid for by the federal government. Reason being for why these four states will receive special privilege is because these states “are suffering more than most” in this economy. Governors, Senators, and other political figures are speaking out against this. The article talk about how other states are suffering as well and that it’s not fair that some states will be able to avoid the increase in taxes that will stem from this new health care plan. Senators from ‘unprivileged’ states are threatening that they soon will step up and ask for special privileges in order to avoid these extra costs. Each state is unarguably suffering in these tough times, and no state wants to see their finances and their people have to suffer while other states will have the opportunity to have it easy. But if each state is whining about how they deserve special privileges, I see dark clouds in the future for this health care reform. If the government won’t be able to work past these issues and make the senators and governors happy, then there is no way they will be able to begin making the people happy.
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