Sen. Dean Heller (R-NV) said Thursday that he has yet to make a decision on his support for the Senate’s bill to repeal Obamacare, but he said in a statement that he has “serious concerns” about how the legislation will impact those on Medicaid.
“Throughout the health care debate, I have made clear that I want to make sure the rug is not pulled out from under Nevada or the more than 200,000 Nevadans who received insurance for the first time under Medicaid expansion. At first glance, I have serious concerns about the bill’s impact on the Nevadans who depend on Medicaid,” he said in a statement.
“I will read it, share it with Governor Sandoval, and continue to listen to Nevadans to determine the bill’s impact on our state,” he added. “I will also post it to my website so that any Nevadans who wish to review it can do so. As I have consistently stated, if the bill is good for Nevada, I’ll vote for it and if it’s not – I won’t.”
The Senate bill released Thursday morning would gradually wind down the expansion of Medicaid initiated by the Affordable Care Act. The process for reducing the federal match rate would take longer than the process laid out in the House bill. However, the Senate’s version makes steeper cuts to Medicaid overall in an attempt to appease conservatives unhappy with the longer transition period.
