Republican Mississippi governor ignores Medicaid expansion and focuses on jobs in State of the State
JACKSON, ma’am. — Mississippi’s Republican Governor Tate Reeves said he deliberately avoided hot-button issues and political conflict in his State of the State address Monday, instead calling on lawmakers to support economic development by funding roads, ports and bridges .
Reeves never mentioned one of the most debated issues so far this legislative session: the possibility that Mississippi, one of the poorest states in the U.S., could expand Medicaid benefits to hundreds of thousands of residents.
He urged lawmakers to create 12 magnet schools that focus on math and engineering, and to create internship programs so high school students could develop career skills.
Reeves, who was installed for his second term in January, said the government should interfere as little as possible in people’s lives.
“We have to be cautious and cautious,” he said. “We must demand lower taxes and regulations. Their money circulating in their cities will do more than any additional government program ever could.”
Mississippi is one of 10 states that have not expanded access to Medicaid to people earning up to 138% of the federal poverty level, or $20,120 per year for one person. Expansion is allowed under the federal health care reform that then-President Barack Obama signed into law in 2010.
Reeves has long opposed Medicaid expansion, saying he doesn’t want more people to rely on government programs. But Republican legislative leaders say this year they are open to discussing the issue, possibly tied to a work requirement.
In the Democratic response to the governor’s speech, Rep. Robert Johnson III of Natchez criticized Reeves for ignoring health care and poverty. Johnson said Reeves has failed to push for economic development in struggling parts of the state.
“He’ll tell you this is the strongest economy it’s ever been. And we ask: For whom, Governor?” Johnson said. “Who are you going to believe, Mississippi? The governor, or your lying eyes?
In January, lawmakers met in special sessions and approved state incentives for two major economic development projects: a four-company plan for an electric vehicle battery manufacturing plant in Marshall County, near the Tennessee state line, and a plan by Amazon Web Services to develop two data centers in Madison County, north of Jackson.
Reeves said Monday that Mississippi must become “masters of all energy.”
“We must and will do it all – from oil derricks on our coast to solar panels in the Delta,” Reeves said. “I don’t care if it’s green wind energy or black crude oil or something in between. It’s made in Mississippi. All of the above and as much as we can do. As long as it is reliable, resilient and affordable.”