South Dakota's governor says Medicaid expansion a no-go now
Proposal would be ripe for legislative consideration later this year or in 2017 session, Governor Daugaard says
South Dakota capital/sd.gov/governor/
South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard has announced the state will not seek Medicaid expansion this legislative session, saying with only a few days left during the current stretch there isn't enough time to thoroughly consider the issue.
The Republican governor said during a press conference Monday that he would ask legislators to remove federal funding authority from the state budget to expand Medicaid this legislative session.
The governor said he expected the proposal would be ripe for legislative consideration later this year or in the 2017 legislative session.
At that time, money for the expansion may come from savings realized for the state, after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said it would start picking up 100 percent of the cost of certain care for Native Americans, according to published sources.
Daugaard has pushed for expansion and has been in talks with the Obama administration. However, the governor received the formal decision on the Indian Health Services policy change from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services late last week, leaving little time for budget talks on Medicaid expansion, he said in a statement.
Thirty-one states and the District of Columbia have expanded Medicaid.
