Senators seek Medicaid-like plan to cover holdout states

Three Democratic U.S. senators from states that have refused to expand Medicaid want the federal government to set up a mirror plan to provide health insurance coverage to people in those states

ATLANTA -- Three Democratic U.S. senators from states that have refused to expand Medicaid want the federal government to set up a mirror plan to provide health insurance coverage to people in those states. Sens. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff of Georgia and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin are introducing the bill Monday, they told The Associated Press. Congressional Democrats are pushing for a coverage expansion in upcoming legislation. “The single most effective solution to closing our state’s coverage gap is to expand Medicaid,” Warnock said after a June 29 meeting with health care executives. “What we ought to be doing is expanding Medicaid rather than playing games with the health care of Georgia citizens.” The effort is crucial for Warnock, who seeks reelection in 2022 facing several Republicans eager to defeat him.