Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

SUN EDITORIAL:

States’ looming shortfalls

Congress should pass needed legislation to boost Medicaid funding

As part of the stimulus program designed to ease the nation’s economic crisis, Congress provided $135 billion in aid to the states to help them curb drastic cuts to services, including police and schools.

Nevada, like many other states, has relied on federal aid. In the special session in February, lawmakers closed a shortfall of about $800 million in part by assuming that Congress would pass legislation to extend increased federal payments for Medicaid, a health insurance program for the poor and disabled.

However, as David McGrath Schwartz reported in Monday’s Las Vegas Sun, a measure in the House to provide $24 billion for states has stalled because of the opposition of fiscally conservative “Blue Dog” Democrats.

If Congress doesn’t pass that money, Nevada will face a shortfall of $88.5 million. Assemblywoman Sheila Leslie, D-Reno, acknowledged it was “a gamble” to balance the budget expecting Congress to provide more money, but Nevada wasn’t alone. About 30 other states also planned for the money. They did so with good reason — President Barack Obama included it in his budget and there were indications in Congress that it would pass.

But facing an angry electorate, some members of Congress are skittish. The Blue Dog Democrats say their opposition is grounded in their concern about the nation’s spending, but in many statehouses, there is a consensus of bipartisan support for the money. Vermont Gov. Jim Douglas, a Republican and chairman of the National Governors Association, told The New York Times that he is “very concerned” about what federal spending will mean “for the long term.” “But for the short term, states need this bridge to sustain the safety net of human service programs and education,” Douglas said.

If Congress fails to provide the money, states would be forced to cut — deeply. The Medicaid money is expected to fill more than a quarter of the $89 billion cumulative shortfall in the states for the coming year.

Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, a Democrat, said the loss of the money would “actually kill everything the stimulus has done. It would be enormously destructive.” Arnold Schwarzenegger, California’s Republican governor, said further cuts would be “both cruel and counterproductive.”

Without the money, Nevada will have to cut $88.5 million from a budget that has been trimmed significantly. Lynn Hettrick, Gov. Jim Gibbons’ deputy chief of staff, told the Sun that there would be “severe cuts,” and they would likely come to health care and services to the poor, mentally disabled and elderly.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid supports giving states the aid, but he will need help. His spokesman said he will need Republican support. A congressional aide told The Times that governors “need to make it clear that this is vital that their states receive this money, instead of bashing Congress for ‘out-of-control spending.’ ”

Indeed. The politicians who have been bashing spending ignore the reality that more cuts will decimate necessary services and hurt citizens who depend on them for years to come. As studies have shown, the stimulus has helped bolster the economy, and now is not the time to take a step backward. States should make that clear to their lawmakers, and Congress should pass this measure quickly.

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