The Legislature has been unfairly criticized for not expanding Medicaid. The blame for the growing mess in health care should be aimed squarely at the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). It’s a law that’s not good for business here in Florida, and its implementation was recently called “a train wreck” by one of its principal authors.The PPACA employer health insurance mandate has business owners in a predicament: Pay to provide health insurance for their employees or face federal government fines. Many Florida employers are faced with laying off workers, cutting back hours and paying more administrative costs just to figure out where their businesses must comply.
Even if one supports adding patients to Medicaid’s rolls, this is certainly not the time to do so. The agency that oversees Florida’s Medicaid program has its hands full with the recent approval of Florida’s long-standing request for a statewide rollout of a managed-care approach. This approach will be a good test of whether Medicaid programs can be reformed and whether the cash-strapped federal government will keep its promise of covering all or most of the costs of expansion.Lawmakers should continue to think outside the PPACA box when it comes to solutions for providing Floridians with improved access to quality care, and protecting current and future taxpayers.J. Robert McClure, III, president, The James Madison Institute, Tallahasseehttp://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2013-06-02/news/fl-online-letter1-20130602_1_medicaid-program-affordable-care-act-employer-health-insurance-mandate
